Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) has warned people not to be fooled by House Speaker Mike Johnson’s mild-mannered presentation.
“You cannot get to the right of Mike Johnson in the MAGA caucus,” Raskin told MSNBC’s Chris Hayes on Wednesday after the Louisiana Republican won the gavel.
“There are people who are definitely more lunatic than he is, and he’s got very good manners, and he’s an able lawyer,” Raskin continued.
“If he’s not for democracy, what’s he for? He’s for theocracy,” Raskin added, pointing to Johnson’s extreme positions on abortion, contraception, social security and other issues.
“He’s a nice guy, but nobody should be fooled by it,” he said.
Johnson, an evangelical Christian, was elected speaker with unanimous Republican support after weeks of party infighting and three failed nominees.
He spearheaded a legal strategy to throw out the 2020 election on behalf of Trump, who endorsed his bid for the speakership.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has also attacked Johnson’s positions on abortion and social security, saying he appears to be an “extreme right-wing ideologue.”
Watch Raskin’s MSNBC appearance below.