House Speaker Mike Johnson's Republican majority is struggling to govern effectively, subjecting the American public to legislative chaos marked by all-night sessions, hours of inaction, and legislation drafted hastily behind closed doors. This week brought the latest example: a bipartisan bill to fund much of the Department of Homeland Security finally passed, ending the longest agency shutdown in history—a crisis that left thousands of federal workers and the communities they serve in limbo.
"Sometimes it's an ugly process, sometimes it's a long process. But we got it done," Johnson said after the vote, acknowledging the dysfunction that has become routine in the Republican-led House.
A Governing Crisis in an Election Year
Republicans face an uphill climb to retain their paper-thin House majority in this election year, and they appear at times as if they are still learning on the job years after returning to power in 2022. This week's starts and stops included five hours of delay as Johnson huddled behind closed doors to salvage his agenda, then a sudden vote tally near 11 p.m. What would typically shock political and procedural senses has become just another Wednesday in the House.
Rep. Ted Lieu of California, part of Democratic leadership, said, "House Republicans have shown again that they can't govern." He added, "They routinely pass bills to the Senate that are way too extreme, then it ends up that we have all these floor session days where we're just doing nothing."
Johnson, who took over for the ousted Kevin McCarthy more than two years ago, is presiding over one of the slimmest House majorities in modern times, leaving him no room to spare if he is trying to pass legislation on party-line votes without Democrats. The speaker is juggling not only President Donald Trump's priorities but also those of the various factions that make up his majority, from the conservative House Freedom Caucus to what remains of the GOP's more pragmatic conservatives.
The Human Cost of Dysfunction
Johnson's own future is always in question, after Republicans chased other speakers, including McCarthy, John Boehner and Newt Gingrich, to early exits. Last year Johnson, of Louisiana, led passage of the party's signature achievement, a big bill of tax breaks and safety net cuts, which Trump signed into law. At the time, he said, "I do so deeply desire to have just a normal Congress," and added, "But it doesn't happen anymore. Our way is to plow through and get it done."
Ahead of the fall elections, Johnson and other Republican lawmakers have discussed an agenda that includes the promise of another GOP-only budget package like the tax cuts bill that they could push through the House and the Senate without Democratic votes. Budget Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, said Thursday that he expects "the centerpiece" of that package "will be supporting our troops" with more than $100 billion in funding for the war against Iran as well as money to replenish defense munitions and other Pentagon-related needs. Despite the turbulent week in the House, Arrington said what they are calling budget reconciliation 3.0 should be the "next order of business."
Campaign Trail or Legislative Work?
Yet GOP lawmakers may decide it is better to skip the hard work of legislating, and the dramatic upheavals that tend to come with it, and hit the campaign trail to win over voters instead. Rep. Richard Hudson, R-N.C., the chairman of the House GOP's campaign arm, the National Republican Congressional Committee, acknowledged that trying to pass legislation with such a tight majority "can be rough. It's ugly." He said, "I'd be fine with letting us go home and campaign. But we've got a lot of important work still to do."
Some of Johnson's most ardent sparring partners, those most conservative Republican lawmakers, turned their blame for the messy process not on Johnson's leadership but on their own GOP allies across the Capitol in the Senate, who often dismiss the House's work. Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas said, "Yeah, sometimes, it gets a little tense. But we're still getting stuff done. We're sending it over to the Senate. So we look forward to them doing their job."
Why This Matters:
The ongoing dysfunction in the Republican-led House has real consequences for working Americans who depend on functioning government institutions. The longest agency shutdown in history at the Department of Homeland Security left critical public safety operations in jeopardy and federal workers uncertain about their paychecks. When lawmakers spend hours in dead zones with no floor action or scramble to pass legislation in late-night votes, the public loses the transparent, deliberative process that democratic accountability requires. With Republicans openly discussing whether to abandon legislative work entirely to campaign, voters face the prospect of a Congress that prioritizes political survival over addressing pressing needs like healthcare costs, infrastructure investment, and climate action. The question before voters in November is whether to reward a majority that struggles to govern or to demand better stewardship of public institutions.