Johnson’s Short Victory Lap

Mike Johnson, John Thune
John Thune and Mike Johnson during a news conference at the Capitol, October 2025. Photo: Valerie Plesch/Bloomberg/Getty Images
Marianna Sotomayor
July 22, 2026

House Republicans—with some help from Democrats—once again managed to pull off what seemed impossible even several hours earlier, passing a raft of bills to avert a government shutdown, fund the Pentagon, and limit lawmakers from trading stocks, all before departing Washington to campaign for a month.