DALLAS — House Speaker Mike Johnson took aim at the Democratic Party’s progressive flank, arguing that figures such as Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Dr. Abdul El-Sayed and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez represent what he views as the most alarming political force in the United States.
Johnson (R-La.) also predicted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) could be headed for a major headache next year as a new group of Democratic Socialists of America-backed lawmakers prepares to enter Congress — even as the speaker insisted Republicans would keep Democrats in the minority.
Asked by The Post who he considers the “most dangerous” politician in America, Johnson said he sees less of a single person and more of a movement. “I would say there’s a type,” he said, pointing to “the Mamdani, El-Sayed, AOC wing of the party” and claiming it poses a threat because, in his view, its members “do not believe in the founding principles of America.”
Speaking on the sidelines of the Republican midterm convention, Johnson sharpened that warning, saying the trend goes beyond a handful of high-profile progressives. He accused them of showing “disdain for American principles” and said they would lead the country “down a dark, dangerous road.” He added that “many Mamdanis” have surfaced nationwide and argued they “don’t understand history.”
The speaker and other congressional Republicans have been using the gathering to promote their legislative record during President Trump’s second term, including tax cuts, while also casting the 2026 midterm elections as a high-stakes fight over what could happen if Democrats regain control of the House.
The Democratic Socialists of America saw seven of its candidates win Democratic primaries this cycle, including several contests close to Jeffries’ New York political base. Other staunchly progressive contenders, such as El-Sayed in Michigan, also notched victories despite not formally running under the DSA banner.
Johnson has spent much of his speakership managing a narrow House Republican majority and navigating dissent from GOP members willing to buck leadership on key votes. Still, he argued that Jeffries will face an even tougher internal challenge if more left-wing Democrats arrive on Capitol Hill.
“Jeffries is going to have a nightmare on his hands, but it’s a very different challenge than the one I have in the Republican conference,” Johnson said. He described his own daily task as bringing together “conservatives,” “rugged individualists” and their competing ideas in search of a workable consensus.
“Hakeem has the opposite approach. He is going to have people in his conference who hate America, hate its founding principles, and want to blow it up — figuratively, in legislation,” the speaker went on. “They want to tear down all the foundational principles of the country.”
Despite their fierce differences, Johnson revealed that he has “a very cordial relationship” with his Democratic counterpart, adding that “I like Hakeem as a person, and I obviously have great empathy for the challenge that he has to deal with.”
Two years ago, Jeffries famously helped bail out Johnson from a revolt staged by former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) over his decision to allow a vote on aid to Ukraine. Democrats voted “present” to save Johnson from the ouster effort.
But some members of House GOP leadership are doubtful that they’ll even be working with Jeffries next year.
“He can’t control his caucus now,” House GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) told The Post. “How’s he going to control it next year if all these crazies get in; if all these communists get in, the writing’s on the wall.”
“Who even knows if he’s going to be [leader] next year?” she added.
The Post contacted Jeffries’ and Mamdani’s offices for comment.
House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-Minn.) rejected the label DSA or progressive.
“They are communists. DSA is a nonsense term,” he said. “They both have the same goal: it’s to control human beings. It’s authority. It’s just that one does it by the ballot box, and the other one does it by force.”
All three GOP leaders were bullish about Republicans’ chances of holding onto the House despite all the chatter among the pundit class of an impending blue wave.
“We recruited extraordinary candidates. [We have] a very strong message,” Johnson said. “They have a fundraising advantage right now in the entire Republican ecosystem. We’ve raised far more funds than Democrats for the first time in a decade.”
“I believe we grow the majority.”
