Rep. Elise Stefanik appeared to accuse House Speaker Mike Johnson of lying about conversations they’ve had about her plans outside of Washington.
Mr. Johnson, Louisiana Republican, said during his weekly press conference that he had spoken with Ms. Stefanik and Rep. Mike Lawler, both New York Republicans, about possibly running for governor in the Empire State.
Both are reportedly eying a challenge against Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. The speaker jokingly said, “I have lots of conversations,” before lauding both lawmakers as some of his “favorite people and my most trusted colleagues.”
“We have lots of House Republicans who are being recruited to run for Senate or governor or do something big. I mean, my preference is that they all stay here with me, but I don’t begrudge anybody for having other opportunities, and we ultimately support them with whatever they do,” Mr. Johnson said.
“But are we having conversations? We are, yeah, and that’s all I’m gonna say,” he continued.
Ms. Stefanik countered the speaker’s recollection.
“This is not true,” she said on X. “I have had no conversations with the Speaker regarding the Governor’s race. Looking forward to the conversation about SALT with NY Members tomorrow. Stay tuned.”
Wendell Husebo, a spokesman for Ms. Stefanik, told The Washington Times that the lawmaker was “setting the record straight.”
“There have been no conversations with the speaker regarding the governor’s race,” Mr. Husebo said. “She is looking forward to the [state and local tax deduction] meeting tomorrow.”
The speaker later addressed her post, clarifying that the two haven’t discussed her plans.
“I just talked to her,” he told reporters. “Elise is one of my closest friends. We haven’t specifically talked about her running for governor. We heard about all these other things, and she’s coming in to visit with me and it’s all good.”
The spat follows a recent change of plans for Ms. Stefanik. She was primed to become the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and gave up her role as House Republican Conference chair and top spots on House committees.
However, President Trump last month pulled her nomination, citing concerns about what her vacancy would do to the House GOP’s already thin majority.
Mr. Johnson called her willingness to abide by the president’s decision and return to the House “selfless” and vowed to invite her back to the House GOP leadership table, where she’s now chairwoman.
