Leader Look: Johnson and Jeffries

IN THIS EDITION

House Leader Look: How Johnson and Jeffries are doing

The Democratic primaries in seats that will actually matter

The House GOP reconciliation markup calendar

Van Hollen meets with Abrego Garcia in El Salvador

THE TOP

House Leader Look: How Johnson and Jeffries are doing

Happy Friday morning.

This morning we’re going to focus on Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as part of our regular “Leader Look” series.

Speaker Mike Johnson. Rightly or wrongly, Johnson constantly feels like he’s being underestimated and doubted. Whether it’s his ability to pass legislation, raise money or manage the oftentimes choppy waters of the House, Johnson feels like he’s not getting a fair shake by some Republicans, Democrats and the news media.

Yet it’s difficult to fully analyze Johnson’s performance without taking into account his governing partner, President Donald Trump. On every critical issue that comes through the House, Johnson is aided by a push — sometimes a shove — from Trump.

Trump helped Johnson get reelected as speaker. Trump helped Johnson pass a government-funding bill last month. The president then helped House Republican leaders jam through a critical budget resolution, followed by even more lobbying on a joint House-Senate budget proposal. Trump raised more than $30 million for the NRCC’s dinner earlier this month, reversing several months of lackluster NRCC fundraising. Team Johnson will have you know that the $32.2 million he raised in the first quarter was the most by a GOP speaker ever.

Johnson’s reliance on Trump isn’t the speaker’s fault. In Trump’s Washington, the president controls everything. Johnson doesn’t have his own agenda; he has Trump’s agenda. The GOP-run Congress is no longer truly an equal branch of government. It’s an organ of the Trump machine.

But we’ve seen some interesting moves by Johnson recently that show he’s getting accustomed to hardball tactics sometimes used by speakers to flex their institutional muscle.

When Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) filed a discharge petition to institute remote voting for new and expectant parents, Johnson sought to quash it through a rule — an extraordinarily heavy-handed power play that’s uncharacteristic for most Republican speakers.

Johnson also used a rule to turn off the fast-track process for members of the House to overturn Trump’s tariffs. Again, this is the opposite of the bottom-up approach that Johnson promised. It’s a hard-nosed tactic to protect Trump and his global trade war.

But Johnson is in the midst of a massive legislative undertaking that will define his speakership. The “one, big beautiful bill” — a Johnson creation in many ways — is making its way through the Capitol. At every stage of the process, Johnson tries to bring maximum pressure to force rank-and-file Republicans to move forward toward final passage of the reconciliation package.

Johnson has massive decisions ahead of him. Moderate Republicans are freaking out about their political future as the GOP charges toward Medicaid cuts. Conservative hardliners want to rip up the Inflation Reduction Act, something many Republicans don’t want to do. The Trump administration is floating the idea of having Republicans abandon the “no-new-taxes” pledge that has bound them together for decades. There are countless calls to be made — and Johnson has set a deadline of 38 days from now to get the reconciliation package to Trump’s desk.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. When we looked at Jeffries six weeks ago, he was coming off a bad stretch. Jeffries had privately berated some of his most vocal members for their wild behavior during Trump’s joint address. Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) had just been censured. Moderate Democrats and progressives continue to fight over the party’s direction, and the base was loudly demanding that Jeffries do something — anything — to take on Trump.

Since then, Jeffries has dramatically stepped up his media appearances and outreach. He’s doing more direct-to-camera reels for social media and trying to talk like a regular person while doing so (see his latest video calling some Trump Cabinet officials “dumb effing individuals,” for example). Jeffries holds two press conferences with Capitol Hill reporters each week, up from his usual one. Jeffries can’t stop the Trump agenda, but he can try to talk it to death.

Jeffries has also guaranteed that House Democrats will win the majority in the 2026 midterms thanks to Trump, a full 20 months before the elections.

Yet Jeffries is in some ways still finding his footing as leader. He’s straddling an older generation of Democrats who abide largely by a bygone political decorum versus a younger group of lawmakers who want to employ the guerrilla tactics embraced by many Republicans.

Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer clashed over government funding in mid-March. Jeffries was a hard no — and led all his members in opposition — on a long-term CR, while Schumer allowed it to pass. Jeffries and other House Democratic leaders even held a presser to bash their Senate counterparts. Jeffries offered a brisk “next question” when asked if he still had confidence in Schumer, a noteworthy slap at the Senate Democratic leader.

But the two leading Hill Democrats huddled the next day in Brooklyn, and they seem to be back on track — mostly. There will be sharp partisan battles over Medicaid, taxes, the debt limit, government spending and immigration where the pair will have to work closely together.

— Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan

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THE CAMPAIGN

The Democratic primaries in seats that will actually matter

The trend of younger Democrats primarying older House incumbents in safe states has dominated headlines in recent weeks. But there are far more consequential competitive Democratic primaries emerging in battleground seats where the majority will be won or lost.

In a growing number of seats represented by vulnerable House Republicans, multiple legitimate Democratic contenders are vying for the chance to advance to the general election. These crowded primaries aren’t inherently negative, with the glut of candidates revealing how many Democratic contenders are optimistic that 2026 may be a boon year for the party thanks to President Donald Trump.

But messy intra-party contests do have the potential to derail Democratic efforts to flip the House. And no candidate wants to spend precious money before the general election.

Just take the example of Arizona’s 1st District in 2024. The top four candidates were separated by just five percentage points in the Democratic primary. The tight margins and crowded field meant Democrats weren’t left with their strongest candidate to take down Rep. David Schweikert (R-Ariz.), who won reelection.

But a bitter primary in Oregon’s 5th District between Democrats Janelle Bynum and Jamie McLeod-Skinner didn’t stop Bynum from knocking off a GOP incumbent in 2024.

Let’s take a look at the burgeoning primary list.

Colorado’s 8th District, currently represented by Rep. Gabe Evans (R-Colo.): State Rep. Manny Rutinel, who raised an impressive $1.1 million in Q1, is facing off against former Rep. Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.). Caraveo lost to Evans in November.

California’s 40th District, represented by Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.): Art gallery owner Esther Kim Varet, who raised $1 million in Q1, is running alongside former school board member Christina Gagnier.

New York’s 17th District, Rep. Mike Lawler’s (R-N.Y.) seat: Local legislator Beth Davidson, veteran Cait Conley, former television reporter Mike Sacks and nonprofit executive Jessica Reinmann are all vying for a chance to unseat Lawler.

New Jersey’s 7th District, represented by Rep. Tom Kean (R-N.J.): Businessman Brian Varela, local politician Greg Vartan, former SBA leader Michael Roth and Navy veteran Rebecca Bennett are all running.

Wisconsin’s 3rd District, represented by Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.): The 2024 Democratic candidate Rebecca Cooke will face off against Eau Claire City Council President Emily Berge. Cooke posted a $1 million first quarter.

Arizona’s 1st District, represented by Schweikert: 2024 candidate Amish Shah is running again, alongside his 2024 primary opponent Marlene Galán-Woods and entrepreneur Jonathan Treble.

Michigan’s 10th District, in the seat that will be vacated by Rep. John James’ (R-Mich.) gubernatorial run: Former Pontiac, Mich. Mayor Tim Greimel is facing off against former prosecutor Christina Hines.

California’s 22nd District, represented by Rep. David Valadao (R-Calif.): Former state Rep. Rudy Salas, who ran against Valadao in the last two cycles, has filed to run again but hasn’t done much campaigning. Randy Villegas, a local school board trustee, is also running. Local reporting has suggested Democrats are also trying to recruit Assemblymember Jasmeet Bains to run.

California’s 41st District, represented by Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.): Former OneRepublic bassist Tim Myers launched his bid for the seat on Thursday, joining a crowded list of lesser-known candidates vying to take on Calvert. Will Rollins, who raised tons of cash in two unsuccessful runs against Calvert, isn’t running again.

— Max Cohen

RECONCILIATION WATCH

The House GOP reconciliation markup calendar

We’re going to keep you in the loop on all of the House committee reconciliation markups. And thank you to all of our competitors for following our reporting on this! Here’s a handy list for everyone:

– Laura Weiss, Samantha Handler, Mica Soellner and Brendan Pedersen

IMMIGRATION

Van Hollen meets with Abrego Garcia in El Salvador

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D) met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia Thursday in El Salvador, the latest development in a case that has attracted international attention.

ICE ordered the deportation of Abrego Garcia – a Salvadoran immigrant who entered the United States illegally in 2011 – despite a court order barring such a move. The Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that the Trump administration must “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return from the notorious CECOT prison. But the Trump administration has said that federal judges can’t dictate U.S. foreign policy and continues to challenge that ruling in court.

Van Hollen initially said he was denied access to Abrego Garcia. But late Thursday, the Maryland Democrat posted a photo of his meeting with Abrego Garcia. Take a look at the photo.

Van Hollen said he looks forward to “providing a full update upon my return.”

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele also posted his own photo of the meeting, as did the White House, showing the enormous profile this case has attained.

– Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan

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