Rising Tensions Between Mike Johnson and Hakeem Jeffries Impact Government Funding Talks

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries chat as they await their turn to speak at the March for Israel on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on November 14, 2023. Drew Angerer/Getty Images/File

In October 2023, when Hakeem Jeffries handed the speaker’s gavel to Mike Johnson on the House floor, they embraced, signaling the start of a pledge to a new era of bipartisan cooperation.

In one of their first private meetings, the two leaders agreed not to attack each other on a personal level, according to several sources familiar with the dynamic.

As men of deeply held religious beliefs, they often spoke about their faith and built working relationships that grew out of their time working together on the House Judiciary Committee early in their congressional careers. At one point during the previous term, Jeffries even helped Johnson keep his job.

However, it was an era of a divided government: Johnson was trying to unite his Republican conference after a tangled contest for the speakership, working with Democrats who controlled the Senate and President Joe Biden in the White House.

Now, with Donald Trump’s revival, Republicans who have taken control in Washington, and a historic government-wide stretch, the dynamic between Johnson and Jeffries has changed.

As the funding pause drags on, the altered interaction between Johnson and Jeffries may complicate finding a way out of the stalemate, especially if any deal requires compromise and each leader must persuade their members to back it.

In this process, the tension between the leaders is highlighted: when the funding pause hurts federal workers and millions of Americans, their rhetoric becomes more polarized, and accusations toward the other party rise.

Ahead lie many challenges: reopening the government, reaching a broader spending agreement, and aligning on further funding for social safety-net programs.

Although both offices remained in touch, they have not met in person since September 2023, and their brief phone conversations are often viewed as checks rather than substantive discussions.

Meanwhile, their public statements grew sharper, as Johnson has to keep Congress out of session for more than another month.

“I believe Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries are hopeless right now.”

The next day Jeffries, at his own press conference, stated: “Republicans hold daily press conferences, and you know what they do? They lie to the American people. These people are stone-cold extremist-liars, starting at the top.”

“Republicans hold daily press conferences, and you know what they do? They lie to the American people. These people are stone-cold extremist-liars, starting at the top.”

After Jeffries confronted the death threat from an individual whose charges had been downgraded following the Capitol riot, he said Johnson had not raised the issue with him personally after the arrest of that individual last month.

“I spoke with him briefly this week, but he had nothing to say about the death threats. And you know, it’s incurable.”

Johnson publicly condemned the threat, telling reporters a few days earlier: “Anyone who threatens to kill any political official, we wholeheartedly condemn.”

“Anyone who threatens to kill any political official, we wholeheartedly condemn.”

Earlier this week Jeffries accused Trump and Johnson of a “pedophile protection program” for the lack of a vote on declassifying Epstein files, and on Wednesday Johnson called Jeffries “probably a socialist” for backing New York mayor-elect Zoran Mamdini.

“[Trump] needs to get off the sidelines and into the game, because until he does, the government will be shut down. Mike Johnson and John Thune have no authority to act unilaterally.”

Although both offices remained in touch, many Democrats believe that certain norms have begun to erode, complicating work by passing legislation outside of bipartisan agreement. Johnson did not provide a clear figure for the upcoming budget, complicating spending and the bipartisan process.

According to some sources, Johnson’s and his team’s approach to drafting a funding plan does not signal to Democrats that he could be a reliable broker beyond formal commitments, while some chambers place the responsibility for the stoppage on the Democratic side.

Despite this, many lawmakers from both parties say that the mutual respect and understanding that underpinned their relationship remain the key to reopening the government and moving forward.

“Staying true to themselves, they can be strong and decent people with principles, but they have real and substantial differences. At the same time, the president remains the decisive factor.”