Increasing Pressure on the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Amid Ongoing Government Shutdown

The government shutdown in the United States enters its second week with no signs of relief, as Speaker of the House Mike Johnson faces rising criticism from within his Republican Party for his decision to extend the House's recess at this critical time.

According to a report from "The Hill," several Republican lawmakers believe that the continued suspension of sessions harms the party's image and gives Democrats an opportunity to score points in the public opinion battle, especially as federal employees' paychecks begin to be affected and the possibility of military pay delays looms in the coming days.

Johnson aimed to increase pressure on Senate Democrats by suspending votes, pushing them to accept the Republican spending bill, but this strategy has sparked widespread internal objections.

Republican Representative Jen Kiggans, who represents Virginia and has her naval base in Norfolk, led a campaign to pass an urgent law ensuring military pay, asserting that "military salaries should not be hostage to the chaos in Washington," noting that President Donald Trump supports this demand.

In contrast, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene called for the House to reconvene immediately to discuss other issues, including the crisis of rising health insurance premiums as government support related to the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) is set to expire.

During an internal meeting of Republicans, lawmakers such as Jay Obernolte, Stephanie Bice, and Julie Fiedorczyk expressed their concern that the House's work stoppage during the shutdown portrays the party as "irresponsible."

Representative Kevin Kelly also criticized Johnson's statements, saying on platform X that "to say the House has done its duty is incorrect... suspending sessions for the third consecutive week sends the wrong message to voters."