Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) went after Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) on the social media platform X Wednesday for his opposition to Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) retaking the gavel.
Republican infighting has increased in recent days as Johnson seeks to keep the speakership and President-elect Trump backing his move.
“@realDonaldTrump received a mandate from the American people in November. @chiproytx did not. It is the America First Agenda, not the Chip Roy First Agenda. It is Make America Great Again, not make Chip Roy Great. President Trump is fighting for America, Chip is fighting to keep his brand marketable,” Van Orden posted on X.
“Some people apparently need to understand that in order to be a Leader, you have to learn how to follow first. I would love to work with Chip, but he needs to understand he can be part of the Team, but there is no way in hell he is the Captain. The Captain will be moving back into the White House shortly and his 1st Lieutenant is @SpeakerJohnson,” he added.
The comments come after Roy has stuck with his opposition to another Johnson speakership even after Trump’s endorsement.
“I remain undecided, as do a number of my colleagues, because we saw so many of the failures last year that we are concerned about that might limit or inhibit our ability to advance the president’s agenda,” Roy said Tuesday on “Varney & Co.” on Fox Business.
Opponents of Johnson have raised concerns about his actions involving Ukraine and more recently the short-term spending deal that occurred before Christmas.
The speakership is a tight race with Johnson unable to afford many defectors in his own party.
“Right now, I don’t believe he has the votes on Friday,” Roy said.
