Rep. Mike Johnson was elected Speaker of the House on October 25, little more than a week ago. Johnson was a relative unknown nationally, so in the past week and a half, Johnson’s background has gotten a thorough examination by the national press. It feels like every single day, there’s some absolutely asinine/scary new story about him, and people already knew that he is a MAGA dumbf–k who wanted to overturn the 2020 election results. Then, last weekend, we learned that he, as a 24/25-year-old, fake-adopted a Black teenager who then rarely was photographed with him in family settings. Johnson’s story about when, where and how he “adopted” have changed over the years and the whole thing is just shady as hell. People compared the situation to Matt Gaetz and Nestor (which I covered here).

So Mike Johnson adopted his 14 year old "black son" when he was 25 and unmarried.

Matt Gaetz adopted a 14 year old Cuban immigrant named "Nestor" when he was 30 and unmarried.

Both are powerful Republicans now in the House. Can anyone help me understand what is going on here? pic.twitter.com/jgHWMZ7O6w

— Brian Rosenworcel (@Bowl_of_Worcel) October 27, 2023

The headlines kept coming and coming after that. Throughout his political and legal career, Johnson has had an outsized focus on homosexuality and he’s openly advocated for “conversion therapy.” He believes homosexuality is a “behavior” not an identity and that you can “recover” from being gay. He also believes that the Roman Empire fell because of gay folks!!!! It’s also widely assumed (because there’s ample evidence) that he’s a “creationist” who does not believe in evolution. Then this week, there have been stories about his finances. From the Daily Beast:

Newly elected Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) does not have a bank account. At least, that’s what Johnson reports on years of personal financial disclosures, which date back to 2016 and reveal a financial life that, in the context of his role as a congressman and now speaker, appears extraordinarily precarious.

Over the course of seven years, Johnson has never reported a checking or savings account in his name, nor in the name of his wife or any of his children, disclosures show. In fact, he doesn’t appear to have money stashed in any investments, with his latest filing—covering 2022—showing no assets whatsoever.

Of course, it’s unlikely Johnson doesn’t actually have a bank account. What’s more likely is Johnson lives paycheck to paycheck—so much so that he doesn’t have enough money in his bank account to trigger the checking account disclosure rules for members of Congress. House Ethics Committee filing guidelines state that members must disclose bank accounts they have at every financial institution, as long as the account holds at least $1,000 and the combined value of all accounts—including those belonging to their spouse and dependent children—exceeds $5,000.

The rules cover all “interest-bearing, cash-deposit accounts at banks, credit unions, and savings and loan associations,” including checking, savings, and money market accounts, along with certificates of deposit and individual retirement funds, or IRAs. (Johnson reported receiving a $10,485.53 distribution from a New York Life IRA in 2017, his first year in office, possibly from a retirement account he had listed the previous year.)

Johnson’s household income puts him in the top 12 percent of earners in the United States. And it’s extraordinarily rare for members of Congress to not list a qualifying bank account—let alone zero assets whatsoever. The Daily Beast reached out to Johnson’s office for comment but did not receive a reply.

[From The Daily Beast]

In the past few days, people have been debating this, like how does he not have a bank account with more than a few thousand dollars in it? My guess is that he has several bank accounts and the issue here is disclosure, not lack of money or living paycheck to paycheck. I would be willing to bet that he and his wife have retirement accounts, investment accounts and several bank accounts in Louisiana and Washington, but they just “forgot” to fill out all of the disclosure forms truthfully. As the Daily Beast’s expert points out, Johnson made over $200K last year and his wife gets a salary from two employers. The Speaker has been lying on his disclosure forms for years.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.