US House Speaker Johnson Eyes Former Trump Aide to Lead Communications - Report

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - New US House Speaker Mike Johnson intends to hire former Trump administration White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah to help lead the lawmaker’s communications efforts, Politico reported, citing a source familiar with the matter.

Johnson tapped Shah to serve as his deputy chief of staff for communications, the report said on Tuesday.

Shah served as deputy press secretary and deputy assistant for former US President Donald Trump. After leaving the White House, Shah worked as an executive at the Fox Corporation.

Shah is expected to help develop Johnson’s communication operations, as well as lead messaging for House Republicans, the report said.

The move comes as Johnson builds a team to help manage his new responsibilities as speaker, a position to which he was elected earlier this month.

Johnson’s hiring choices, which include several well-known Republican staffers, indicates his embrace of House Republicans’ existing political infrastructure, Politico also reported. Johnson hired Billy Constangy, who previously served as chief of staff for Republican campaign head Richard Hudson, to lead his political operations, the report said.

Johnson hired former staffer Dan Ziegler to lead his policy department as well, the report said. Johnson also plans to maintain the existing structure of the Congressional Leadership Fund, a political action committee dedicated to electing Republicans to seats in the House of Representatives, the report said.