Speaker Johnson Delivers Historic Address to U.K. Parliament in Honor of America 250

This morning, Speaker Johnson delivered an address to the U.K. Parliament in honor of America's 250th anniversary. During his address, Speaker Johnson emphasized the enduring and special relationship between the U.S. and the U.K and urged leaders in both nations to recommit to the core principles that have defined both since their founding. Speaker Johnson is the first American Speaker of the House to address Parliament. Click below the image below to watch Speaker Johnson's address.

Below are key excerpts from the address:

“It is an objective and obvious truth that a strong America is good for the entire world, and a strong UK is as well. At the same time, it's also obvious that we have to take care of our own houses, so to speak, before we take care of the neighborhood. And let's be honest, among friends here, in both of our nations, there is a need today to fortify our houses against internal challenges as well. In the west, if we make an honest assessment, we must acknowledge that our long-term prosperity and security are currently being undermined by, let's call it a crisis of self-doubt. It's been developing now for years.”

“As we chart our renewal, America has no intention of walking alone. In fact, to do so would be self-defeating. More than ever before, we need the British people to be great and proud and patriotic, and you are, to work in close concert with us, as partners and friends, and to defend the security of the Western world. That means secure borders. It means serious investments in our shared defense and maintaining strategic strongholds around the world.”

“We have faced in America, just as you have here, a truly menacing skepticism towards history and our national institutions. And it's even come to the point where great heroes like Sir Winston Churchill are questioned for their legacy. What has taken hold is a mindset that defines itself not by what it loves and seeks to preserve, but instead by what it condemns and seeks to tear down. And this growing disaffection we see, particularly among our younger citizens, is a serious threat to the health of both our nations. If the next generation is never exposed to the deeper wisdom of the western world, or the enduring tradition of the British parliament, or the genius of America's model of Republican self-government, then why would they feel any obligation to defend or preserve them?”

Thank you,

Office of Speaker Mike Johnson