‘Need Team Players’ – RedState
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) joined Salem News Channel’s Larry O’Connor earlier this morning for his first exclusive interview following big Trump-backed primary victories last night. He quickly delivered a clear-eyed assessment of the results and charted a path forward for the America First movement.
In doing so, he threw cold water on Democrats’ hopes (seemingly an event every election cycle) of flipping a Texas Senate seat following the president’s broad support for Ken Paxton.
Johnson also hammered Texas Democrat James Talarico’s “crazy” comments on faith, celebrated Republican Thomas Massie’s (KY-4) ouster by calling for “teamwork” and dismantled MSNBC host Katy Tur’s viral take on America’s founding principles.
Not bad for a day’s work.
Johnson, in his interview with O’Connor, almost immediately turned his attention to Texas, flatly rejecting Democratic predictions that Talarico could somehow ride a wave of momentum to capture a U.S. Senate seat. He pointed out that the opposition party believes it will finally succeed in Texas every cycle, as evidenced by its massive spending in the Lone Star State, and yet there is no Sen. Beto O’Rourke, for example.
“All this, breathless, you know, Democrats’ claims that Talarico… would win the Senate seat? I don’t believe it,” he scoffed. “They say that in Texas every cycle. ‘Oh, Texas is going purple!’ I just don’t believe it.”
“I think the people of Texas are going to make the right decision and we will have another Republican senator.”
WHO : @SpeakerJohnson puts water on the Democrats’ chances of gaining a Senate seat in Texas after Ken Paxton’s primary victory.
“All these breathless claims about Democrats that Talarico… would win the Senate seat? I don’t believe it.”
“They say that in Texas every… pic.twitter.com/OB2jCJK72h
– Townhall.com (@townhallcom) May 20, 2026
WHO : @SpeakerJohnson puts water on the Democrats’ chances of gaining a Senate seat in Texas after Ken Paxton’s primary victory.
“All these breathless claims about Democrats that Talarico… would win the Senate seat? I don’t believe it.”
“They say that in Texas every cycle. ‘Oh, Texas is going purple!’ I just don’t believe it.”
“The people of Texas are going to make the right decision and we will have another Republican senator.”
@LarryOConnor
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Democrats hope Paxton will be a less acceptable candidate for statewide office than incumbent Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX). But they don’t take into account that Talarico is an extremist dressed in moderate clothing.
Johnson turned his attention to some of Talarico’s controversial comments on faith, dismissing them outright as political poison for any statewide candidate.
“He has some weird takes that I don’t usually hear every Sunday when I go to Mass. Do you think Texans will embrace James Talarico or the Gospel of James?” » joked O’Connor.
The Democratic candidate has sparked outrage by repeatedly pushing a progressive reinterpretation of Christianity that blatantly contradicts biblical teachings, including asserting that God is “non-binary” and that the Bible does indeed allow abortion.
“I think the more he talks, the less people support him, because he has some pretty wild opinions,” Johnson surmised.
“I think Talarico is trying to present himself as some sort of centrist or moderate because he talked about faith,” he added. “But he’s a radical leftist with very radical views.”
.@LarryOConnor: “[Talarico] has some weird takes that I don’t usually hear every Sunday when I go to church… Do you think Texas will adopt… the Gospel of James?”@SpeakerJohnson: “The more he talks, the less people support him. He has some pretty eccentric opinions.”… pic.twitter.com/7GCpydOHCp
– Townhall.com (@townhallcom) May 20, 2026.
@LarryOConnor: “[Talarico] has some weird takes that I don’t usually hear every Sunday when I go to church… Do you think Texas will adopt… the Gospel of James?”@SpeakerJohnson: “The more he talks, the less people support him. He has some pretty eccentric opinions.”
“When someone introduces some of these crazy theological propositions… You should evaluate that carefully.”
“He is a RADICAL leftist with VERY radical views…”
Johnson and O’Connor then turned their attention to Massie’s primary defeat on Tuesday, openly celebrating the lawmaker’s ouster as a major step toward GOP unity.
Massie, whose congressional career was marked by a stubborn refusal to vote for anything his party supports, claiming it as the mark of a maverick libertarian outsider, then dove into the deep end, throwing himself with the duo of Ro Khanna and Marjorie Taylor Greene on the Epstein files simply for show, losing his primary to Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL supported by President Trump.
Johnson said Massie “has been a thorn in my side for a long time” and pointed out that the lawmaker has served more as an obstructionist for the benefit of the resistance than as a valuable member of the Republican Party.
“He votes with Democrats most of the time,” Johnson said. “We need teamwork. We need people who are constitutional conservatives who understand the America First agenda and want us to help make it happen.”
NEW – @SpeakerJohnson celebrates the fall of Thomas Massie:
“He votes with the Democrats…and that’s been a thorn in my side for a LONG time.”
“We need team players…who understand the America First agenda!”
“It’s a big trend.”
“I spoke to the president… He… has… pic.twitter.com/j9PAkEfCQt
– Townhall.com (@townhallcom) May 20, 2026
NEW – @SpeakerJohnson celebrates the fall of Thomas Massie:
“He votes with the Democrats…and that’s been a thorn in my side for a LONG time.”
“We need team players…who understand the America First agenda!”
“It’s a big trend.”
“I spoke to the president… He… has the most powerful support in the history of politics!”
Massie had no interest in the America First agenda and a keen interest in drawing attention to himself. Someone like that doesn’t help the conservative cause, and he may soon join MTG, offering anti-Trump commentary on CNN and engaging in group therapy with the cast.
The President described Massie’s defeat, coupled with other conservative victories last night, as a “big trend.”
And it was President Trump’s unparalleled approval power that helped achieve these results.
Editor’s note: The 2026 midterm elections will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both houses of Congress.
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