Trump refuses to support Paul Ryan, John McCain in upcoming Republican primaries
By Philip Rucker August 2 at 5:59 PM
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is refusing to back House Speaker Paul D. Ryan in his upcoming primary election, saying in an interview Tuesday that he is “not quite there yet” in endorsing his party’s top-ranking elected official.
Trump also said he was not supporting Sen. John McCain in his primary in Arizona, and he singled out Sen. Kelly Ayotte as a weak and disloyal leader in New Hampshire, a state whose presidential primary Trump won handily.
With Ryan’s Wisconsin primary scheduled for next Tuesday, Trump praised the House speaker’s underdog opponent, Paul Nehlen, for running “a very good campaign.” Trump said that Ryan has sought his endorsement — an assertion that a Ryan spokesman denied later Tuesday — but that as of now he is only “giving it very serious consideration.”
“I like Paul, but these are horrible times for our country,” Trump said. “We need very strong leadership. We need very, very strong leadership. And I’m just not quite there yet. I’m not quite there yet.”
Trump’s refusal to back Ryan represents an extraordinary breach of political decorum and signals that the Republican Party remains divided two weeks after a national convention in Cleveland staged to showcase party unity.
Trump made his comments during a wide-ranging interview Tuesday afternoon over lunch at the Trump National Golf Club in Northern Virginia.
Trump and Ryan have had a difficult and tense relationship over the past few months. Ryan endorsed Trump this spring after he became the presumptive nominee and spoke on his behalf at the convention, but only after a period of public soul-searching.
Ryan has disagreed with Trump on several key issues — including his proposed temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States — and issued a statement over the weekend that indirectly took issue with Trump’s belittling of the parents of dead U.S. Army captain Humayun Khan.
“Many Muslim Americans have served valiantly in our military, and made the ultimate sacrifice,” Ryan said in the statement. “Captain Khan was one such brave example. His sacrifice — and that of Khizr and Ghazala Khan — should always be honored. Period.”
McCain could not be reached immediately for comment. The Ryan spokesman, Zack Roday, issued this statement: "Neither Speaker Ryan nor anyone on his team has ever asked for Donald Trump's endorsement. And we are confident in a victory next week regardless."
With wife Ghazala at his side, Khizr Khan spoke at last week’s Democratic National Convention. He said Trump “smears the character of Muslims” and challenged the Republican nominee’s knowledge of the U.S. Constitution.