Mike Johnson has plan to avoid government shutdown while managing Republican expectations

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) appears to have a plan to avoid a government shutdown, but he is already hedging against pushback from hard-line Republicans by claiming that conservatives shouldn't expect "home runs."

Johnson reportedly told GOP lawmakers during a private call on Friday night that they might be "disappointed” with the final bills if they are expecting “home runs and grand slams” in them.

The speaker is essentially admitting that House Republicans are incapable of actually doing anything meaningful and that this spending package will be more of the same.

Voters can expect no major cuts to the extreme levels of spending pushed by the Biden administration.

Conservatives can also bet that there will be no effort made to shut down the border using a shutdown as leverage.

All of this is extremely disappointing for Republicans who hoped that Johnson would be a change from former Speaker Kevin McCarthy. Otherwise, the dramatic ouster of McCarthy might as well not have happened at all.