elon musk
Republican leaders have taken to X to voice their support for Tesla founder Elon Musk as a replacement for Mike Johnson as Speaker of the House. Apu Gomes/Getty Images

GOP leaders including Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Marjorie Taylor Green are proposing Tesla founder Elon Musk replace Mike Johnson as Speaker of the House following the release of Johnson's widely criticized spending bill.

Johnson's Continuing Resolution, aimed at averting a government shutdown on Friday, has become the subject of Republican ire. The House Freedom Caucus dubbed the 1,500 document the "Cramnibus" bill.

On Thursday, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said on X that she would be open to supporting Elon Musk for Speaker of the House.

"DOGE can only truly be accomplished by reigning in Congress to enact real government efficiency. The establishment needs to be shattered just like it was yesterday. This could be the way," the lawmaker wrote.

Later on Thursday, Taylor Greene posted a poll on X asking followers if they'd support Musk for Speaker of the House.

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul used X on Thursday to voice his support for the Tesla founder as Speaker of the House.

"The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress," Paul wrote.

"Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk," he continued.

Also on Thursday, in an interview on the Benny Show Podcast, an independent news show, Utah Senator Mike Lee suggested Musk or Vivek Ramaswamy would be preferable to Johnson. "The DOGE movement is enormously popular in the house," Lee said to explain his supposition. "They all have expressed such affection for Vivek or Elon. Let them choose one of them," he continued.

Like Paul, Lee highlighted the fact that the Speaker of the House does not need to be a member of Congress.

If Johnson is ousted, he will become the second Speaker of the House in history to be removed from the role. In October 2023, Republican Senator Kevin McCarthy was removed as Speaker of the House in a shock vote where members of his own party turned against him.

Originally published by Latin Times