House Speaker Paul Ryan is declining to offer his support to Donald Trump as the Republican Party’s presidential nominee.
In an interview with CNN on Thursday, the Janesville Republican said he’s “just not there right now” when it comes to accepting Trump as the party’s standard-bearer in the November elections. Ryan said the presumptive nominee needs to do a lot of work to unify the party after a contentious nomination fight, and needs to bring an agenda that can appeal to independents and some Democrats as well. Ryan said the nominee needs to lead on that effort.
Trump is expected to win the nomination after Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich both bowed out of the race earlier this week. Several Republican leaders have called on the GOP to rally behind the billionaire, so the party can win back the White House in November.
Trump fired back at Ryan in a statement, saying “”I am not ready to support Speaker Ryan’s agenda. Perhaps in the future we can work together and come to an agreement about what is best for the American people. They have been treated so badly for so long that it is about time for politicians to put them first!”