Some conservative legislators are considering having Elon Musk succeed Mike Johnson as House Speaker.

Rand Paul, a Republican from Kentucky, is seeking to oust the current leadership in Washington, DC, and he has put Musk, a billionaire outsider, as a possible candidate amidst the mayhem that President-elect Donald Trump has caused on Capitol Hill, as Fox News reported.

"The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress," Paul said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, Musk's social media platform.

"Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk... think about it... nothing's impossible. (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka 'uniparty,' lose their ever-lovin' minds)."

The Speaker of the House need not be a member of Congress . . .

Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk . . . think about it .  . . nothing’s impossible. (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka ‘uniparty,’ lose their ever-lovin’…

— Rand Paul (@RandPaul) December 19, 2024

Paul's proposed replacement of House Speaker Mike Johnson with a non-representative comes amid rising tensions over federal spending and rebellion against the Louisiana representative, indicating a potential fight for leadership in the Republican-led chamber.

On X, Marjorie Taylor Greene, a member of the Freedom Caucus and a representative from Georgia, voiced her support for Musk by stating, "The establishment needs to be broken exactly like it was yesterday." She added: "This could be the way."

Trump's Take

The joint statement by President-elect Trump and Vice President-elect JD Vance rejected the House Democrats and Republicans' spending package to prevent a government shutdown, instead advocating for debt ceiling increases and spending cuts.

"Republicans must GET SMART and TOUGH," they wrote. "If Democrats threaten to shut down the government unless we give them everything they want, then CALL THEIR BLUFF."

Greene, who had already attempted to remove Johnson in May, asked Twitter followers on Thursay whether they would back Musk for speaker by posting a poll to her @RepMTG account. More than 52,000 people had cast their ballots in the survey.

Constitutional Guidelines

There is no requirement that the speaker of the House be a lawmaker in the United States Constitution.

While members of Congress have traditionally held this office, the absence of a ruling has effectively opened the nomination process to anybody who satisfies the qualifications.

A number of senators and representatives have recently considered asking billionaire Elon Musk to step into the position.

This is in response to Republican opposition to Johnson's planned federal funding measure, which included Trump and Musk, the soon-to-be president.