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Missed Opportunities

July 16, 2019 · 4:47 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Jonathan Last: “The biggest of these missed opportunities was Paul Ryan’s decision not to mount a campaign against Trump following the Access Hollywood tape. Had Ryan actively turned on Trump and called on other Republicans to do the same, he would have broken the party. That’s a 100 percent certainty.”

“But Trump would not be president today. That’s also a 100 percent certainty.”

“Which means that all of the damage Trump has inflicted on the GOP since 2016 wouldn’t have happened. And without the power of the White House, his institutional hold on the party would have been broken. If the party was capable of healing itself—an open question—the healing process would already be underway.”

“Paul Ryan’s political career would have been over, too. But then, that was inevitable at the time anyway. Ryan just didn’t realize it.”

Republicans Paul Ryan

Trump Slams Paul Ryan’s ‘Atrocious’ Record

July 11, 2019 · 11:46 pm ET · Leave a Comment

“President Trump went on a tear against former Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) late Thursday night, lambasting his “atrocious” record after excerpts from a forthcoming book described the former GOP leader as exasperated with the president,” The Hill reports.

“In a trio of tweets, Trump blasted Ryan over his 2012 failed vice presidential bid on a ticket with Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), ripped him over his inability to secure funding for a border wall and blamed the former Speaker for losing the Republican majority in the House last year.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Ryan Saw Retirement as an ‘Escape Hatch’

July 11, 2019 · 10:58 am ET · Leave a Comment

Former Speaker Paul Ryan saw retirement as an “escape hatch” from two more years working under President Trump, according to Tim Alberta’s new book American Carnage, per an early copy obtained by the Washington Post.

Said Ryan: “We’ve gotten so numbed by it all. Not in government, but where we live our lives, we have a responsibility to try and rebuild. Don’t call a woman a ‘horse face.’ Don’t cheat on your wife. Don’t cheat on anything. Be a good person. Set a good example.”

He added: “I told myself I gotta have a relationship with this guy to help him get his mind right… Because, I’m telling you, he didn’t know anything about government.”

American Carnage
On the Front Lines of the Republican Civil War and the Rise of President Trump
by Tim Alberta · Harper · 2019
Buy on Amazon
Paperback·Kindle
More on this book from Political Wire →

Political Books, White House Paul Ryan

Ryan Says Trump Stands Up for the ‘Forgotten Man’

June 24, 2019 · 4:26 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Former Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) told PBS Newshour that President Trump’s popularity is because he stands up for the “forgotten man.”

Said Ryan: “He’s not taking any crap. I mean, he’s taking on political correctness; he’s taking fights that a lot of people want to see fought. The forgotten man that he speaks to is a person that finally feels like they’re being taken seriously, they’re being paid attention to. And he’s concerned about their issues.”

He added: “That is the guttural core of what I would call the party base right now, the Trump base.”

White House Paul Ryan

What Paul Ryan Is Up To

April 3, 2019 · 7:07 am ET · Leave a Comment

Janesville Gazette: “Ryan said he is working at … the offices of a foundation he is establishing to work on the ideas in two laws he pushed through Congress to address poverty. His longtime chief of staff, Andy Speth, is running the American Idea Foundation, he said. The focus is to make sure the laws are ‘properly implemented.'”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Ryan Backs Off Saying Trump Could Lose

March 14, 2019 · 1:45 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Former Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) walked back his comment that President Trump could lose re-election.

Tweeted Ryan: “To be clear, GOP wins elections when they’re about ideas not when they’re personality contests like Dems and media want. We’re clearly better off because of Donald Trump. His record of accomplishment is why he’ll win re-election especially when compared to Dems’ leftward lurch.”

2020 Campaign Paul Ryan

Paul Ryan Was Unusually Dishonest

December 20, 2018 · 10:30 am ET · Leave a Comment

Jonathan Bernstein: “Paul Ryan gave a farewell speech to the House of Representatives on Wednesday. He won’t be missed. Ryan was badly cast as speaker of the House from the start, and failed to ever really grow into the job. But that wasn’t the worst of it.”

“One problem for Ryan was honesty. For me, the core example was his convention speech in 2012 as a vice-presidential candidate. That Ryan acted as an attack dog and exaggerated some facts was no big deal. But what was unusually dishonest was a particular attack on President Barack Obama: ‘He created a bipartisan debt commission,’ Ryan said. ‘They came back with an urgent report. He thanked them, sent them on their way, and then did exactly nothing.'”

“This was extraordinary. Ryan himself was not only on that bipartisan commission, he was the one who torpedoed the ‘urgent report,’ which never reached the president because of Ryan’s own actions. It’s one thing to push the boundaries of the truth or to engage in clever spin, but Ryan’s attack was pure fantasy that transferred his own actions to his opponent.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Paul Ryan Has Failed Spectacularly

December 19, 2018 · 9:25 am ET · Leave a Comment

First Read: “House Speaker Paul Ryan, who delivers his farewell address today at 1:00 pm ET, always had big ideas. He called for the government to respond to the growing deficit/debt; he advocated for a fundamental restructuring of Medicare and entitlements; he pushed for tax reform; and he demanded an improvement in the nation’s political discourse.”

“But those ideas — except for tax reform — never really matched up to reality and party politics. The debt and deficit he saw a ‘crisis’ to reduce? Well, it’s gone up in the Trump years when Ryan was speaker and the GOP controlled government. Major entitlement reform? Hasn’t happened. Improving political discourse? Hello, President Trump.”

“Ryan’s defenders say it’s difficult to continue to tackle the deficit/debt when the other players — especially the White House — aren’t interested.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Ryan’s Legacy a Matter of Debate

December 18, 2018 · 6:41 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan “is using his final weeks in Congress to leave a lasting image of a brainy conservative warrior for lower taxes, free markets and a more muscular America abroad — in public appearances, a taxpayer-funded online video series and a farewell address set for Wednesday,” the Washington Post reports.

“But after two decades in the House and three years as speaker, the Wisconsin Republican’s long-term legacy is already a matter of fierce debate, including within his own party.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Ryan Questions California Election Results

November 29, 2018 · 10:42 am ET · Leave a Comment

“Weeks after House Republicans lost their majority, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) on Thursday cast serious doubts about the “bizarre” election system in California, where it appears that seven GOP-held seats will flip to Democratic control,” The Hill reports.

Ryan said the California election system “just defies logic to me.”

He added: “We were only down 26 seats the night of the election and three weeks later, we lost basically every California race. This election system they have — I can’t begin to understand what ‘ballot harvesting’ is.”

2018 Campaign Paul Ryan

Trump Bashes Paul Ryan Over Birthright Citizenship

October 31, 2018 · 12:56 pm ET · Leave a Comment

President Trump slammed Speaker Paul Ryan on Twitter for rejecting his call to end birthright citizenship.

Said Trump: “Paul Ryan should be focusing on holding the majority rather than giving his opinions on birthright citizenship, something he knows nothing about! Our new Republican majority will work on this, closing the immigration loopholes and securing our border!”

Playbook: “The rich irony of this is that Ryan has been on the road non-stop for the last two years — as have Kevin McCarthy and Steve Scalise. Don’t cry for them — it’s their job! — but to say that any of them aren’t worried about the majority would be nonsense.”

Immigration Paul Ryan

Ryan Says Trump Rallies ‘Sometimes’ Cause Division

October 28, 2018 · 4:41 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan told Face the Nation that President Trump’s campaign rallies “sometimes” cause division and that “sometimes he doesn’t practice” unifying politics.

Said Ryan: “I worry about tribal identity politics becoming the new norm of how politics is waged.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Ryan Says Trump Will Sign Spending Bill

September 26, 2018 · 11:58 am ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan said President Trump has told him he will sign a spending bill to avert a government shutdown, the Washington Post reports.

Said Ryan: “I’m confident he will sign it. … This funds our military, this funds opioids, this does a lot of the things that we all want to accomplish together and we’ve had very good conversations with the president.”

Budget & Taxes Paul Ryan

Bonus Quote of the Day

August 7, 2018 · 12:47 pm ET · Leave a Comment

“It boomerangs. He goes in the other direction, so that’s not effective. The pissing match doesn’t work.”

— Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), quoted by the New York Times, on why he’s not publicly critical of President Trump.

Political Strategy, White House Paul Ryan

The Strange End to Paul Ryan’s Speakership

August 7, 2018 · 6:57 am ET · Leave a Comment

New York Times: “Ryan announced in April that he would not be seeking re-election, ending a 20-year run in Congress that, for most of it, seemed to be on a straight-up trajectory. Ryan’s official reason for leaving was that his ‘family clock was ticking’ and he no longer wanted to be a ‘weekend dad.’ But it’s easy to suspect otherwise, and not just because that is a clichéd excuse.”

“Ambitious 48-year-old politicians at the peak of their powers don’t suddenly just decide to quit because they’ve discovered that their teenage children are growing up fast back in Wisconsin. Ryan should, by rights, be riding out of town at the pinnacle of his starlit Washington career. Yet he remains a distinctly awkward match to a moment — and president — that seem certain to define much of his legacy.”

House of Representatives Paul Ryan

Paul Ryan Uncovers His Jewish Roots

August 1, 2018 · 7:42 am ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan “was surprised and proud to find out he has Jewish roots,” the AP reports.

“The Wisconsin Republican discovered his family history while filming a segment for the upcoming season of the PBS series ‘Finding Your Roots With Henry Louis Gates Jr.’”

Race Paul Ryan

Ryan Says He Has No Plans to Run for President

July 12, 2018 · 1:11 pm ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) said that he does not have any plans to run for president in the coming years, the Weekly Standard reports.

Said Ryan: “I’ve thought about it, and I’ve decided not to do it. I like myself too much. You never say never to things like that, but I’ve had plenty of opportunities to think about it, to look at it, and I’ve always chosen not to do it.”

He added: “I really, really do not have it in my mind, and for sure not while my kids are at home. And they’re home for the next five years. I’ll be a has-been by then.”

2024 Campaign Paul Ryan

Ryan Pushes Immigration Vote Until Next Week

June 22, 2018 · 5:32 am ET · Leave a Comment

Speaker Paul Ryan surprised Capitol Hill by delaying a vote on a “compromise“ immigration package until next week, as GOP leaders search for a way to get 218 votes to pass the measure, Politico reports.

“Ryan told lawmakers that leadership may add an E-Verify mandate — an online system that allows employers to confirm the eligibility of employees to work in the United States — as well as other provisions called for by rural state lawmakers to the package.”

House of Representatives, Immigration Paul Ryan

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Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard

Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.

More about Taegan Goddard →

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