‘Bernie Sanders and AOC Said the Quiet Parts Out Loud’: Mike Johnson [WATCH]

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) criticized congressional Democrats on Thursday, marking Day 16 of the ongoing government shutdown, and accused top Democrat leaders of prioritizing political theater over public service.

Speaking alongside House Republican leaders during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol, Johnson singled out Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), claiming they have been “saying the quiet parts out loud” and “bragging” about their party’s resistance to compromise.

.@SpeakerJohnson: “Bernie Sanders and AOC said the quiet parts out loud” during their CNN town hall last night.

“They don’t know what they want to end the shutdown.” pic.twitter.com/jDFeEN59zP

— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) October 16, 2025

Johnson said House Republicans are focused on mitigating the effects of the shutdown for working Americans while Democrats have chosen to “toast themselves” and perform for the cameras.

“Everywhere across America right now, we’re helping small business owners and farmers and ranchers and service coordinators navigate frozen loans and delayed emergency funds amid growing uncertainty about how to keep serving their communities,” Johnson said.

“All across the country, Republicans are dealing with the very real and painful consequences facing real Americans. Now that’s happening on the Republican side and what’s happening on the Democrat side, you can see it for yourself. Compare what I just told you with what they’re doing. Look at their own behavior. Look at their actions. Don’t listen to the words that people are saying. Look at what they’re doing.”

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Johnson cited examples of what he described as partisan displays from Democrats over the last several days.

“Chuck Schumer and Democrats over the last 10 days, here’s a small sample of their activity, okay?” Johnson continued.

“We’ve seen performative stunts and TikToks and photo shoots across every inch of this Capitol. We’ve seen Democrats actually toast themselves on the balcony of the DCCC last night while their colleagues voted in the Senate to keep the government closed for the 10th time. We’ve seen not one, but two failed publicity stunts right outside my own office, the latest of which ended in a congresswoman storming the entrance and berating a Capitol police officer, who, by the way, is protecting her without pay.”

The Speaker also addressed comments made during a CNN town hall the previous evening featuring Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez.

The two lawmakers blamed Republicans for the shutdown and rejected proposals from the GOP to temporarily extend federal healthcare subsidies in exchange for reopening the government.

“At some point, Democrats have to take ‘yes’ for an answer,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) said in a statement to MSNBC, confirming the offer had been presented as part of the negotiations.

Ocasio-Cortez dismissed the idea during the CNN broadcast, saying, “I don’t accept IOUs. I don’t accept pinky promises. That’s not the business that I’m in.”

When asked whether a pledge from President Donald Trump would satisfy Democrats, Sanders replied sarcastically, “Oh yeah, no doubt, because the president is a very honest man.”

Johnson pointed to the town hall as evidence of what he called Democrats’ unwillingness to compromise. “Last night… many of you saw it. CNN hosted the first socialist town hall, where Bernie Sanders and AOC said the quiet parts out loud,” he said.

“They don’t know what they want to end the shutdown. They couldn’t provide a single viable solution for the mess that they themselves have gleefully created.”

“And by the way, those are the real leaders of the Democrat Party,” Johnson added.

“We all know it. AOC and Bernie. Good luck with that.”

He also addressed comments from Schumer made to Punchbowl News last week, where the Senate Democrat leader said, “Every day gets better for us.”

Schumer told the outlet that his party had anticipated the standoff for months, saying, “It’s because we’ve thought about this long in advance, and we knew that health care would be the focal point on Sept. 30, and we prepared for it… Their whole theory was — threaten us, bamboozle us, and we would submit in a day or two.”

Johnson called Schumer’s attitude unacceptable given the toll the shutdown is taking on families and workers nationwide.

“And amid all that, Chuck Schumer is actually bragging that every day gets better for his party. As you know, those are his words, not ours,” Johnson said.

“All this would be laughable if it didn’t come at the cost of American families. And it really is deadly serious. If it were up to Republicans alone, we would not be in this mess.”

The government shutdown began after negotiations over spending and healthcare funding broke down in late September. No agreement has yet been reached to reopen federal agencies or restore full services.