Washington, DC – Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA), the latest candidate put forward by Republicans to be their leader and Speaker of the House, has repeatedly elevated white nationalist “great replacement” and “invasion” conspiracy theories that are directly linked to multiple acts of deadly violence in Buffalo, Pittsburgh, El Paso, Charlottesville, and elsewhere. Per new research released today by America’s Voice (also detailed below), Rep. Johnson has recently and repeatedly embraced these falsehoods, especially the conspiracy that Biden immigration policies are intentionally designed to replace white voters with non-white ones.
According to Zachary Mueller, Political Director for America’s Voice:
“The elevation of Mike Johnson to Speaker of the House would encapsulate the ongoing descent of the Republican Party into a paranoid, extreme, fearful, conspiratorial, nativist, and anti-democratic party.
While the mainstreaming of the white nationalist ‘replacement’ and ‘invasion’ conspiracies has been disturbingly pervasive among his Republican colleagues over the last few years, Rep. Johnson has gone much farther than most, delivering full-throated assertions that Democrats and the Biden administration are intentionally encouraging migration as part of a political plot to increase Democratic voting power, while portraying migrants and asylum seekers as ‘vicious’ and ‘illegal’ and ‘lawless masses’ who are ‘turning our country into a crime scene.’ He must be aware that his rhetoric echoes the chants in Charlottesville and has deep roots in antisemitism. The rhetoric he has spread in Judiciary Committee hearings, on Fox News and social media are directly connected to multiple examples of white nationalists citing these types of falsehoods as motivation for deadly acts of violence.
So-called GOP moderates and those Members from congressional districts carried by President Biden or with significant numbers of immigrant voters should be on notice about the choice they have and the scope and consequences of elevating Mike Johnson into the presidential line of succession.”
Ongoing research and tracking by America’s Voice includes the following examples of Rep. Mike Johnson embracing and mainstreaming these falsehoods – conspiracies that originally were limited to white nationalist, fringe circles:
- 7/26/21 – Fox News Interview: After FOX Business host Dagen McDowell referenced that immigration “increases the voting base for the Democrats,” Rep. Mike Johnson (LA-04) responded, “that’s right, we are not conspiracy theorists but that is the only thing that makes sense here.” Johnson continued, “they want to turn these people into voters.”
- 4/5/22 – Breitbart: “There is no longer any other conclusion: The chaos is intentional.”
- 4/19/22 – Twitter: “Last month alone, there were over 40,000 more illegal migrants encountered by CBP at our southern border than the entire population of Shreveport (the 3rd largest city in LA). The Biden Administration is intentionally allowing the destruction of our country.”
- 4/21/22 – News Release: “Allowing illegal immigrants to flow freely across our southern border…President Biden’s continued intentional destruction of our country at the expense of our own people must stop.”
- 4/29/22 – Newsmax: “…we believe this is an intentional effort to flood our country with illegals, and it is a dangerous situation.”
- 4/29/22 – House Judiciary hearing, speaking to DHS Secretary Mayorkas: “…because of your deliberate and defiant policies … we have a literal invasion of lawless masses flooding over our border from more than 160 countries … innocent children, sir, are being abducted, assaulted, raped and murdered by human traffickers. Countless numbers of known terrorists and vicious gang members are clearly coming across our border and making their way into our communities all over the country … our entire country is becoming a crime scene.”
- 5/12/22 – Twitter: “HERE’S THE ANSWER for all who have asked why in the world the Democrats would intentionally open our borders: Late last night I got them to admit the goal is to TURN ILLEGALS INTO VOTERS!”
- 2/2/23 – Twitter: “The Biden Administration has RELEASED 1.7 million illegal aliens into American communities. The catastrophe is INTENTIONAL.”
- 3/29/23 – Twitter: “Mayorkas LIED repeatedly to the Senate Judiciary Comm yesterday. I called for his impeachment last year & summarized here why his INTENTIONAL acts will destroy our country if he isn’t stopped. Dems continue to protect & empower this carnage. God help us.”
- 5/11/23 – Twitter: “…The chaos at our open border is the INTENTIONAL outcome created by Biden & Mayorkas.”
- 5/22/23 – Newsmax: “The Biden administration has done this intentionally. [Department of Homeland Security] Secretary [Alejandro] Mayorkas has done this intentionally. For what reason? Everybody asks me all the time. I think that ultimately they hope to turn all these illegals into voters for their side.”
Resources and Background
- See more details and context about Rep. Mike Johnson use of dangerous white nationalist conspiracies via this America’s Voice research overview HERE
