Mike Johnson looked like a man trying to outrun his own shadow on Sunday. Sitting across from This Week host Jonathan Karl, the House Speaker squirmed through a tough line of questioning about why Arizona Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva hasn’t been sworn in—despite winning her race weeks ago.
Grijalva’s swearing-in delay has sparked a political firestorm, with growing speculation that the holdup isn’t about bureaucratic timing but about what she’s planning to do once she takes her oath: force a vote to release the Epstein files.
Asked point-blank why the delay, Johnson first pointed the finger at Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and the broader government shutdown mess. Then he pivoted to his favorite fallback: Nancy Pelosi.
“This is the way the institution works. I’m following the Pelosi precedent, by the way,” Johnson said, referencing a 25-day delay in 2021 to swear in Rep. Julia Letlow, who replaced her husband after his death from COVID-19.
Karl wasn’t buying it. “Are you saying that Nancy Pelosi refused to swear her in earlier?” the ABC host asked, clearly pushing Johnson to name a real reason for Grijalva’s wait time.
Johnson stuck to his talking points, trying to shift the conversation to other examples of delayed swearing-ins. But Karl stayed locked in.
“And what about the Johnson precedent?” he shot back. “You swore in two Republicans the day after their election—”
That was a reference to GOP Reps. Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis, who were quickly sworn in back in April—even though the House wasn’t officially in session. Johnson didn’t answer directly, instead circling back to Pelosi and tossing out names of Democrats like Pat Ryan and Joe Sempolinski, whose swearing-ins happened after recess.
Grijalva, though, is ready. And the House is not in recess. The only thing standing between her and the oath is Mike Johnson.
Karl, clearly aware of the optics, pressed once more: “You could swear her in tomorrow, right? I mean—”
“No, not tomorrow. No, we couldn’t, we wouldn’t,” Johnson interrupted. Then came the kicker: “There was an exception for two Floridians earlier in this Congress but the reason was they were duly elected, they had a date set, they flew in all their friends and family, and the House went out of session unexpectedly.”
So, let’s get this straight: if a new member flies in friends and family, that warrants a fast-track ceremony—but if a Democrat shows up ready to blow the lid off the Epstein saga, we’re supposed to believe the lights are off and nobody’s home?
Grijalva’s intent to force a vote on the Epstein files has made waves, particularly because unsealing them could reignite uncomfortable ties—possibly even dragging Donald Trump back into the spotlight over his past association with Jeffrey Epstein, the disgraced financier who died under suspicious circumstances in federal custody during Trump’s first term.
Watch the clip below:
