Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters that he is “absolutely delighted” that progressive firebrand Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, is running for U.S. Senate.

Johnson was asked during a House leadership press conference on Wednesday what he thought of Crockett entering the race and whether he was worried about her chances of flipping one of Texas’ Senate seats.

In response, Johnson rubbed his hands together and smiled.

“I’m absolutely delighted that Jasmine Crockett is running for Senate in Texas,” said Johnson.

“I think it’s one of the greatest things that’s happened to the Republican Party in a long, long time,” he went on, adding, “She is the face of the Democratic Party, she and [Zohran] Mamdani. Good luck with that.”

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Johnson said that he would like Crockett to “have the largest, loudest microphone that she can every single day.”

“We look forward to having that election down there,” he said, adding, “We are going to elect another Republican senator in Texas. Texas is a red state… The people of Texas are commonsense Americans, and what Jasmine is trying to sell will not be purchased by the folks of Texas.”

Later that day, House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., shot back at Johnson’s statements about Crockett, saying, “I think Speaker Johnson is trying to do anything he can to distract from the majority… that we see dwindling, and it’s like sand falling through his hands.”

“He just can’t keep a hold of it – he sees that – he would much rather talk about a Senate race than he would the Georgia House races that Republicans lost or the mayor’s race that the vice-chair mentioned, the first time in 30 years that a Democrat has been mayor of Miami… he wants to distract and take away from this because he’s losing his grip on his majority. That much is very clear.”

“So, the more that Speaker Johnson wants to talk about the national landscape and the Senate environment, I absolutely support because he’s losing his majority next November, if not sooner,” said Aguilar.

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Crockett, who is an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, launched a last-minute Senate campaign on Monday. The race may determine if the GOP holds its majority in the chamber next year.

In her announcement speech to supporters in Dallas, Crockett framed her candidacy as an effort to stand up against Trump, something she said incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn will not do. 

“I’m done watching the American dream on life support while Trump tries to pull the plug. The gloves have been off, and now I’m jumping into the ring,” she said. 

“Many people wonder why I jumped in this race so late, and I just want to be clear that this was never my intention, this was never about me, I never put myself into any of the polls,” Crockett said. “But the more I saw the poll results, I couldn’t ignore the trends, which were clear, both as it relates to the primary as well as the general election, I could have played it safe and continued serving in the United States House of Representatives for as long as my constituents would have me, but I don’t choose to do that, because, Texas, this moment we’re in now is life or death.” 

“Many people asked, ‘Can we win this race in November?’ I’m here to say, ‘Yes, we can!’” Crockett fired back while echoing a slogan from former President Obama, whom she praised during her speech. 

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“Texas is a big boy state made up of brawlers with a moral code. Our representation should reflect that, sadly enough, it doesn’t,” she went on. “After evaluating the data, analyzing the trends, researching historic numbers, and combing over the crosstabs, it was clear, the numbers were strongest for my candidacy for United States Senate, that’s why I decided to enter this race.”

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In the Democratic primary, Crockett will be facing off against state Rep. James Talarico, another rising Democratic star.

On the Republican side of the aisle, Cornyn is being challenged by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt, R-Texas.