Congressional Memo
In a podcast interview, Speaker Mike Johnson opened up about the crushing demands of a job that he joked was his in name only.
Credit…Tierney L. Cross/The New York Times
- Nov. 26, 2025
After several bruising weeks for Speaker Mike Johnson, a soft-focus podcast interview alongside his wife, conducted by Katie Miller, the wife of Stephen Miller, one of President Trump’s top advisers, had all the ingredients for a flattering reset.
What emerged from the interview instead was a portrait of a Republican leader barely keeping his head above water in a job to which he does not appear particularly well suited, a conversation full of tragically revealing details packaged as rueful humor but with the biting sting of truth.
“We have this joke that I’m not really a speaker of the House,” Mr. Johnson, who represents Louisiana, said in the latest episode of “The Katie Miller Podcast.”
It came across as less of a joke and more of an assessment of how he has chosen to wield his power.
The comment was in line with how many of his political adversaries view his weak handling of the job he was thrust into two years ago with little leadership experience. (Even President Trump has joked, “I’m the speaker and the president.”)
Ms. Miller’s newish podcast offers conservative leaders a warm bath of an interview. They are peppered with questions about their family routines and their favorite foods. But even on this forgiving platform, Mr. Johnson presented himself as a man toiling to fulfill his duties at a moment when his weak grip on his conference appears to be slipping even further.
The conversation that Ms. Miller facilitated with Mr. Johnson and his wife, Kelly, meandered from what time Thanksgiving dinner should be served, to how to raise children who don’t identify as transgender, to how to keep a long marriage strong. But the throughline was Mr. Johnson’s sense of being crushed by his workload and the demands of his job managing an unruly Republican majority.
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Annie Karni is a congressional correspondent for The Times.
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