- Speaker Mike Johnson faces GOP revolt for keeping the House dark, accused of dodging accountability and blocking Adelita Grijalva’s swearing-in.
- The stalled House risks forcing open records on Jeffrey Epstein—Grijalva’s seat would provide the 218th signature to unseal investigative files.
- The shutdown endangers ACA subsidies and could trigger massive premium hikes, harming 24 million enrollees as open enrollment nears.
As the federal government grinds to a halt for the third time in two years, House Speaker Mike Johnson is facing a revolt from his own party—not over the usual partisan brinkmanship, but over what critics are calling a blatant attempt to dodge accountability on everything from child sex trafficking scandals to skyrocketing health care premiums.
With the House sidelined indefinitely and a newly elected Democrat locked out of her seat, Johnson’s strategy is unraveling faster than the short-term funding patch he pushed through in September.
Insiders say the real casualty isn’t just federal workers furloughed without pay; it’s the trust in a Congress that’s more interested in hiding than governing.
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The shutdown, now stretching into its third week, kicked off after Congress failed to pass a full-year spending bill by the September 30 deadline.
Johnson and House Republicans blame Senate Democrats for stonewalling a “clean” continuing resolution, but the speaker’s decision to keep the chamber dark has only amplified accusations that he’s using the crisis as cover.
“This isn’t leadership; it’s a lockdown,” said Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Calif., in a rare break from party lines during a CNN interview Sunday.
Kiley, a freshman known for his moderate streak, didn’t mince words: “There’s a duly elected member from Arizona waiting to be sworn in. She should be seated now, shutdown or not. I don’t know why this is even an issue.”
Grijalva’s Limbo and the Epstein Files
That member is Adelita Grijalva, the 54-year-old Democrat who cruised to victory in a special election on September 23 to succeed her late father, Rep. Raúl Grijalva, in Arizona’s 7th District.
Grijalva’s win wasn’t just a family legacy moment; it was a political earthquake.
Her pledge to sign a bipartisan discharge petition—the procedural hammer that forces a floor vote—would deliver the magic 218th signature needed to compel the Justice Department to unseal investigative files on Jeffrey Epstein, the financier and convicted sex offender whose 2019 death in federal custody left a web of unanswered questions.
The petition, spearheaded by an unlikely duo of Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif., has simmered for months, drawing support from 217 lawmakers across the aisle.
But Grijalva remains in congressional purgatory.
Johnson insists her swearing-in will happen “as soon as the House reconvenes,” citing standard procedures and the need for Arizona’s election certification, due today.
Yet that’s a tough sell when you consider the precedent: Earlier this year, Johnson fast-tracked oaths for two Florida Republicans—Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis—during pro forma sessions, even before results were fully certified.
Grijalva herself traveled to D.C. last week, only to fly home empty-handed after two fruitless days.
“I try not to be a conspiracy theorist,” she told KJZZ radio, “but the only difference here is that I’m the 218th signature on the Epstein petition.”
GOP Dissent and Social Media Storm
The optics couldn’t be worse for Johnson, a devout evangelical who once declared the Bible his “worldview.”
Even firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., who’s rarely crossed leadership, is turning up the heat.
“Why are we in recess? Because the day we go back, we’ve got 218 votes to force the Epstein vote,” Massie posted on X last weekend, a sentiment Greene echoed in an Axios interview: “I’m not coming off the petition. Aren’t we all against pedophiles and enablers?”
On X, the backlash is relentless: One viral post accused Johnson of “stalling the nation to keep one woman from turning on the lights,” racking up thousands of shares.
Another limerick from user @LimeriTweets went viral, skewering the speaker: “Mike Johnson would like to repeat / the Democrat shutdown is complete / … hiding Epstein files / So GRIJALVA cannot take her seat.”
This isn’t Johnson’s first dance with the Epstein specter.
Back on July 22, he abruptly cut short the legislative week and sent lawmakers home early for summer recess—explicitly to sidestep a brewing vote on the files.
Punchbowl News reporters Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan crunched the numbers Monday: Since July 3, the House has logged just 20 session days out of 104 calendar days—a glacial pace that projects to fewer than 80 days for the full year.
That’s a new postwar low, eclipsing even the infamous 80th “Do Nothing” Congress of 1948, which clocked 109 days but at least had the excuses of opposing a Democratic president and midterm campaigning.
ACA Subsidies and Looming Premium Hikes
The Epstein delay is just one thread in a tapestry of dysfunction.
Democrats have tied ending the shutdown to extending enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, set to lapse December 31.
Johnson dismisses it as a “Dec. 31 issue,” but experts beg to differ.
Open enrollment for 2026 marketplace plans kicks off November 1—less than three weeks away—and insurers are already locking in rates assuming the worst.
Without an extension, premiums for subsidized enrollees could more than double, from an average $888 annually to $1,904, per KFF analysis.
That’s a gut punch for the 24 million Americans on ACA plans—many in red states like Texas and Florida, where Medicaid expansion lags.
“People will start shopping November 1 and see their costs explode,” warns Cynthia Cox of KFF.
“We’re talking 114% hikes on average, hitting small business owners, retirees, and farmers hardest.”
A KFF poll last week underscores the peril: 78% of voters—Democrats, Republicans, independents, even MAGA supporters—want the subsidies extended.
The White House, meanwhile, is juggling mixed signals: Blaming Democrats one day, then axing thousands of federal jobs the next to “trim fat.”
Democrats are hammering the narrative, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer blasting Republicans for “protecting Epstein files over the American people.”
Even Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, broke ranks Friday, voting against a GOP funding stopgap and floating a shutdown-ender that includes subsidy relief.
Shutdown’s Human Toll and Historical Echoes
As the clock ticks toward open enrollment and potential premium Armageddon, the shutdown’s human toll mounts: Furloughed FDA inspectors delaying drug approvals, halted WIC nutrition for new moms, and FEMA sidelined amid hurricane season.
Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., captured the fury in a viral video: “Over two weeks ago, Grijalva was elected—the 218th vote for Epstein transparency. Now Johnson refuses to seat her. Release the files, NOW.”
History offers a stark warning.
In 1948, Harry Truman turned the “Do Nothing” Congress into his secret weapon, barnstorming the country to a shock re-election.
Johnson, with a GOP White House and Senate majority, has no such alibi.
If he thinks stalling will shield him from the Epstein fallout or voter rage over health costs, he’s betting on the wrong verse.
Also Read: Republicans Face Growing Backlash as Voters Blame Them for Govt. Shutdown
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