Written by Hudson Crozier
What’s happening: Legacy media outlets have come out with a flurry of articles associating House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) with “Christian nationalism” for his views on marriage, sexuality, and the “so-called separation of church and state,” as he puts it.
- The narrative: The conservative speaker is “the embodiment of white Christian nationalism,” pushing “Christian supremacy” and threatening “democracy” with “theocracy,” according to the media. Christians like him are similar to or “a bigger threat” than Islamic terror groups such as Hamas and the Taliban, writers claim.
What does he say? "I’m not trying to establish Christianity as the national religion or something,” Johnson said in response. “That’s not what this is about at all.” In the past, Johnson has explained that his faith “informs everything” he does as an official and argued, “the founders wanted to protect the church from an encroaching state, not the other way around.”
- Is that extreme? Polling has consistently shown that around half of Americans think the Bible should influence laws and want a “Christian nation.”
Why it matters: While Republicans often use Christian-friendly rhetoric to win voters, Johnson shows more signs of sincerity in his beliefs. This earns him the label of an extremist in America, despite the nation's deep historical ties to those beliefs.