Why Ryan Declined to Run for Majority Leader

“Amid the jockeying that has been taking place on Capitol Hill following House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s primary defeat, it has been somewhat surprising that one of the GOP’s most famous names has gone largely unmentioned,” the Washington Post reports.

“But that is because Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) has quietly and firmly shut the door on any prospect of being part of the GOP’s elected House leadership team… his ambitions lie elsewhere. In the short term, he wants to become chairman of the Ways and Means Committee in the coming year. Over the longer haul, he may well make another bid for national office, perhaps for the top of the ticket in 2016.”

“However, even as he has demurred making his own bid for a leadership post, Ryan said he has been active behind the scenes.”