Against all odds and expectations, Speaker Mike Johnson keeps managing to fund the government, inflame the far right of his party — and hold on to his job.

Catie Edmondson, a congressional correspondent for The Times, explains why it might be Democrats who come to his rescue.

Guest: Catie Edmondson (https://www.nytimes.com/by/catie-edmondson) , a congressional correspondent for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• Ultraconservatives immediately turned on Mr. Johnson (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/23/us/congress-spending-bill-johnson-far-right.html) after Congress passed spending legislation.
• Enraged over the spending bill, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene began the process of calling for a vote to oust the speaker (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/22/us/politics/greene-oust-johnson-spending-bill.html) .

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily (http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily) . Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.