Despite the federal charges against Trump for conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, and his recent guilty verdict in an unrelated hush money trial, the Republican former president arrives Thursday emboldened as the party’s presumptive nominee. He has successfully purged the GOP of critics, silenced most skeptics and enticed once-critical lawmakers aboard his MAGA-fueled campaign.
“We’re excited to welcome President Trump back,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson, who led one of the lawsuits challenging the 2020 election, and had his biggest fundraising day yet after Trump’s felony conviction.
The Republican speaker demurred over whether he’s asked Trump to respect the peaceful transfer of presidential power and commit to not doing another Jan. 6. “Of course he respects that, we all do, and we’ve all talked about it, ad nauseum.”
