Rep. Elise Stefanik has her eyes set on becoming New York’s next governor. But she is not fading quietly from Capitol Hill, where she engaged this week in a public spat with the most powerful fellow Republican in the House: Speaker Mike Johnson.
As part of a days-long dispute over a legislative provision she wanted included in an annual defense policy bill, Stefanik called Johnson a liar on social media, and in an interview with The Washington Post she called the leadership of the Louisiana Republican “rudderless” and suggested that President Donald Trump is the chamber’s controlling figure.
“Republican members know that the real speaker of the House is Donald Trump,” Stefanik said in the wide-ranging interview Tuesday. “It is Donald Trump who has delivered these results working with House members.”
Stefanik, who holds a House leadership position but does not attend all leadership meetings, also escalated her feud with Johnson this week by signing onto a so-called discharge petition to force a vote on a bill that would ban members from trading stock — a move that circumvents a speaker’s authority over the House schedule.
“Since I’ve been at the leadership table under the current speaker, this is an issue that he has continued to punt,” Stefanik said. “And as speakers know, you address members’ legislative priorities before they boil over into a discharge petition.”
Whatever Stefanik’s motives for sparring with Johnson, it could resonate in her nearly month-old bid to topple New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) in a blue state, political strategists say.
“I think that anything that burnishes her already established rhetoric as an independent voice for issues that matter, it helps her in a gubernatorial run,” said Dave Catalfamo, a Republican strategist from New York.
Stefanik has said she is trying to build a coalition to win the governorship that will include Democrats and independents as well as Republicans.
Once a loyal lieutenant of House leadership that defended the party line as chief messenger for Republicans, Stefanik maintains that her fights with Johnson are to push policies that benefit her Upstate New York district. But those closest to her acknowledge that she remains upset by how Johnson — not Trump — treated her over the past year as she set her sights beyond the House.
In early 2024, Stefanik was a favorite to be Trump’s vice-presidential pick, a role that ultimately went to then-Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio). Stefanik was then offered what she said was a dream job, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, but her nomination was withdrawn by Trump over concerns about losing a House member given the narrow GOP majority.
Stefanik has blamed Johnson, not Trump, for killing the nomination, according to two people familiar with her thinking who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Johnson downplayed this week’s tensions, saying House Republicans are united.
“I’m not sure how to comment on what Elise is doing or what the rationale behind this is, but you can talk to Republicans in Congress,” he said. “We’re working together to keep delivering our agenda and … that’s my focus.”
The latest back-and-forth comes at a sensitive time for Johnson, as he tries to maintain control of the narrow House Republican majority. For members like Stefanik, who will not be returning next year, there is less reason to be restrained in criticizing him. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Georgia), for instance, publicly chided the speaker in rounds of interviews last month. Greene, who has also tussled with Trump, said she will leave Congress in January, a year early, temporarily making the GOP majority even slimmer.
Stefanik this week accused Johnson of blocking a provision she championed in the National Defense Authorization Act that would require law enforcement to disclose to Congress when it opened a counterintelligence investigation into an elected official or candidate. Johnson denied interfering with the proposal. Stefanik accused him of spreading “more lies.”
Johnson reversed course Tuesday night and allowed the language back in the NDAA after previously saying at a news conference that he would address the issue. Two people familiar with the events said the switch came after a conversation between Stefanik and Trump and then a follow up-call that included Johnson. The people spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Stefanik said on social media Wednesday that the conversations had been “productive” and touted the aim of her provision.
“This is a significant legislative win delivered against the illegal weaponization of the deep state,” Stefanik wrote.
Johnson told reporters Wednesday that there had been “a misunderstanding of the facts” on the issue with Stefanik.
Stefanik has been known to support Republican women in the ranks through E-PAC, a leadership committee started in 2018 to help elect more women to Congress. It had more buy-in from previous Republican speakers, a person who works with the PAC said on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly.
Stefanik announced her run for governor last month, casting herself as an independent-minded Republican focused on economic affordability and safety. Her announcement video did not mention Trump.
Stefanik’s team has interviewed multiple top strategists who have worked closely with former New York governor Andrew M. Cuomo, who was defeated in the Democratic primary this year for New York City mayor and then ran unsuccessfully as an independent in the general election.
Jake Dilemani, a Democratic strategist, said Stefanik appears to be trying to “brandish her independent credentials.”
“Now, the tricky part of that is she has historically been an ally of President Trump, and President Trump is going to play a far larger role in what happens in the 2026 elections than Speaker Johnson will,” Dilemani said.
The timing of Stefanik’s gubernatorial announcement was notable.
She declared her Republican bid two days after New York City voters elected democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani as mayor — a backdrop her team used to argue that Hochul is cozying up with a socialist.
Last month, Trump unexpectedly embraced Mamdani during a White House meeting. This week, the two spoke again, even as Stefanik has made Mamdani — and Hochul’s endorsement of him — a focal point of her campaign.
In The Post interview, Stefanik deflected when asked if Trump’s friendly rapport with Mamdani derailed her messaging strategy.
“My focus is on defeating Kathy Hochul, the worst governor in America,” Stefanik said. “That is our strategy.”
The post Stefanik spars with House speaker as she seeks GOP nod for N.Y. governor appeared first on Washington Post.
