A legislative dispute between Chairwoman of House Republican Leadership Elise Stefanik and Speaker Mike Johnson over a provision requiring congressional disclosure of FBI counterintelligence investigations into federal candidates ended in a reversal by Johnson after days of public criticism and intraparty pressure.
Over the past several days, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) launched a sustained and highly visible effort targeting House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), accusing him of blocking a surveillance oversight measure in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and siding with Democrats against key Republican priorities.
After multiple posts on social media and remarks in interviews alleging Johnson was undermining efforts to expose politicized intelligence practices, Stefanik announced on Wednesday that her provision would be included in the final version of the bill following a discussion with both Johnson and President Donald Trump.
At issue was a proposal championed by Stefanik requiring the FBI to notify Congress whenever it opens a counterintelligence investigation into presidential or federal candidates — a measure she says is designed to prevent politically motivated probes like the FBI’s 2016 Crossfire Hurricane investigation. The provision had passed the House Intelligence Committee in the current and prior Congresses, but was reportedly excluded from the NDAA following Democratic opposition, particularly from Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD).
Stefanik took her objections public on December 1, posting on X that “Republicans have the House, Senate, and the White House, yet the deep state is alive and well with the Speaker getting rolled by House Dems.” She warned that unless her provision were reinstated, she would oppose the defense bill, despite consistently supporting such legislation in the past. She argued the measure was critical not only in light of the Russia probe but also in response to what she described as recent instances of federal overreach, citing the “Arctic Frost wiretapping scandal” and leaks involving developer Steve Witkoff.
Speaker Johnson initially rejected Stefanik’s accusations. In remarks reported by Punchbowl News, Johnson asserted, “All of that is false. I don’t exactly know why Elise won’t just call me. I texted her yesterday. She’s upset one of her provisions is not being made, I think, into the NDAA … As soon as I heard this yesterday, I was campaigning in Tennessee, and I wrote her and said, ‘What are you talking about? This hasn’t even made it to my level.'” Johnson indicated that he was unaware of the dispute until recently and that he first heard about it while campaigning in Tennessee.
Stefanik responded swiftly on X, calling Johnson’s statements “just more lies from the Speaker,” and directly contended that he had “torpedoed” her provision. She maintained the measure was the only item in the NDAA addressing intelligence community oversight and criticized the decision to exclude it after committee passage, particularly at the behest of what she described as a “Democrat minority member in a closed door meeting.”
This back-and-forth escalated Stefanik’s criticism of Johnson’s leadership beyond the NDAA. In interviews, including one with the Wall Street Journal, Stefanik said that Johnson is “losing control of House Republicans” and predicted he would not survive a speakership vote if held today. She challenged Johnson’s leadership capabilities, pointing to GOP frustration over health care, government funding, and election strategy.
Stefanik’s opposition came amid broader signs of dissent within the House GOP. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) introduced a discharge petition to force a vote on banning stock trading by members of Congress — a move Stefanik signed on to, joining other Republicans displeased with party leadership. Stefanik’s support for the petition was interpreted as another sign of dissatisfaction with how Johnson has handled legislative priorities.
In the wake of a contentious exchange over the NDAA, Stefanik stated Wednesday that a “productive discussion” with Johnson and Trump led to the reinstatement of her surveillance provision in the legislation. “This is a significant legislative win delivered against the illegal weaponization of the deep state,” she posted. Later the same day, she emphasized her willingness to move forward, telling reporters she and the Speaker were aligned on refocusing efforts to deliver “results to the American people.”
For his part, Johnson downplayed the dispute, calling it a breakdown in communication and saying, “I never understood what all the disturbance was about.”