A Russian state TV host has celebrated Mike Johnson becoming the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
The Trump-supporting Republican was elected to the role this week after 22 days of deadlock after Kevin McCarthy's ousting earlier in October and failed bids from other candidates, including Jim Jordan.
In a clip from Russian TV channel RTR Planeta, translated by Russian Media Monitor, Olga Skabeeva said Johnson would "suit" Russia because of his stance on Ukraine.
Newsweek has contacted Johnson to comment on the claim.
She said: "Zelensky is in mourning today. Mike Johnson was elected House speaker. All 220 Republican Congressmen voted for him.
"Johnson is not only the ultra-right Trump supporter who always voted against aid to Ukraine and made corresponding statements that were considered to be anti-Ukrainian.
"Where Ukraine is concerned, it's sufficient to look at Johnson's ratings with his respect to his support of Ukraine. His rating is very poor. This means that all of this suits us well."
She added: "If the new speaker did not swear or make promises to his pro-Ukrainian fellow party members, the budget of aid to Ukraine is in question.
"With a Trump fanatic as a speaker, the bill for $106 billion, proposed by Biden, definitely will not pass. Johnson will simply not put it up for a vote. Outward attention of the U.S. will be focused on helping a Jewish nation [Israel]."
Last week, President Joe Biden announced in a speech that he had sent a budget request to Congress requesting aid for both Israel and Ukraine. The request is expected to be about $105 billion, with some $60 billion for Ukraine.
Meanwhile in Russia: state TV is celebrating Mike Johnson's speakership, because of his anti-Ukrainian stance. They also appreciated Virginia Foxx yelling "Shut up!" to a reporter. This too is in total alignment with Russian values and interests. https://t.co/0jAzFzTWvS
— Julia Davis (@JuliaDavisNews) October 26, 2023
Johnson initially expressed support for Ukraine after the country was invaded by Russia in February 2022. He voted for the Ukraine Democracy Defense Lend-Lease Act in April 2022, a bill that aimed to ease the process for the U.S. to send military aid to Ukraine, but has recently voted against two bills that provided aid to Ukraine and has made statements appearing to question the value of such aid to the American taxpayer.
"American taxpayers have sent over $100 billion in aid to Ukraine in the last year," Johnson said in an X post in February. "They deserve to know if the Ukrainian government is being entirely forthcoming and transparent about the use of this massive sum of taxpayer resources."
American taxpayers have sent over $100 billion in aid to Ukraine in the last year.
— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) February 28, 2023
They deserve to know if the Ukrainian government is being entirely forthcoming and transparent about the use of this massive sum of taxpayer resources. pic.twitter.com/pf0ZpjzU2f
Asked after his election as speaker if he would support more aid to Ukraine, he said, "We all do," but then added that aid would have to come with "conditions."
On Thursday, he told reporters he'd had a "productive meeting" with Biden about the matter.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Kate Plummer is a Newsweek reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on U.S. politics and national affairs, and ... Read more
