BREAKING: Speaker Ryan Will Not Run For Reelection
According to Axios, he will make the announcement later this morning. It could have major political repercussions:
One of Washington’s best-wired Republicans said:
“This is a Titanic, tectonic shift. … This is going to make every Republican donor believe the House can’t be held.” The announcement will help Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) in his fundraising because “the Senate becomes the last bastion,” the Republican said.
He got his tax cuts, so he’s done.
“This is going to make every Republican donor believe the House can’t be held.”
Buck up Republican donors. Remember, you have the built in advantage of running against wishy-washy, suck-ass Democrats.
I think you’re right, RE. But the story is bigger than him leaving. I think it DOES make it more likely that the D’s will take the House. When even Rethug strategists are spreading that meme, it has a chilling effect on fundraising. Not to mention it might hasten a few more ‘voluntary’ exits from the House.
There are some real good D candidates to go along with the sucky wishy-washy ones. Largely those who have been inspired by the Women’s March and subsequent grassroots political activity.
That’s true.
https://youtu.be/bgiQD56eWDk
He is jumping off the Titanic, pushing woman and children out of the way as he scrambles to get on a lifeboat as a true coward does.
He’s also looking to save whatever political future he might have. Someone’s gonna have to be the Rethug nominee in 2020. A few years away from the Trump soap opera might not hurt.
I love that image of Ryan. very on the nose.
I can see not being Speaker, but leaving the House entirely is a bit of a surprise. Perhaps he ran a poll and wasn’t doing so hot against his opponent? Taking his tax cuts and going home saves face for future ambitions. Losing in your home district could have been devastating.
I wonder what evil fuck Republicans will find to be Minority Leader.
It was his only play, head for the exit…they are losing the House and he doesn’t want to be Minority Leader. He is trying to preserve his political viability for down the road. His district is swingy, so it could even shift to Dem without Ryan running. Will be interesting to see if he speaks out against Trump now instead of being a cheer leader.
Paul Ryan has Politics in his blood. Where he ends up is anyone’s Guess.
Since Ryan just engineered the transfer of a trillion bucks into the hands of capital I think he’ll be fine.
I wish nothing but darkness and pain on him.
Agreed the ship is sinking and they are all grabbing the last lifeboats. We better get some life vests.
Mitch McConnell just called Paul Ryan “the happy warrior”. That was the affectionate nickname for Hubert Humphrey. Mitch, I knew HH and Paul Ryan is no Hubert Humphrey.
In another month or two, House GOP will have set a new record for self-deportation.
” Will be interesting to see if he speaks out against Trump now instead of being a cheer leader.”
Don’t make me laugh.
Don’t count out Kevin McCarthy sucking up to Trumpolini. Ryan an Ayn Rand fan sees the writing on the wall. GOP after Trump will turn into the party of Whigs. Ryan, “I have accomplished what I came to do”…right tax cuts for the 1%, increased deficits into trillions. I despise this little hypocrit so bad, I can’t wish him well.
He’s quitting because he realized that his Ayn Randian nuttiness couldn’t compete for attention with the nuttiness of Donald Trump.
“Don’t count out Kevin McCarthy sucking up to Trumpolini.”
Everybody is actually counting ON that happening.
“GOP after Trump will turn into the party of Whigs.”
I don’t understand what this means. What do you know about the Whigs?
Well, this is fun. The only Republican left in the race in Ryan’s district is an alt-right, anti-Semite white nationalist.
Maybe he meant that Trump is a party to wearing wigs?
And…another Rethug congressman heads for the exits:
http://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2018/04/11/rep-dennis-ross-is-retiring/
Just a reminder: Kevin McCarthy is one of the dumbest men in Congress. He’s the one who told a gathering of GOP Congress leaders that he thought Trump and Rohrabacher were being paid by Russia before Paul Ryan shushed him up and said, “This stays in the family.”
http://www.latimes.com/politics/essential/la-pol-ca-essential-politics-updates-year-old-mccarthy-comment-that-trump-1495063901-htmlstory.html
For my part I would have preferred a crushing defeat at the polls, but I’ll take it. As for what happens to Ryan gimme a break, it’s straight off to K Street and a primo lobbying gig for big bucks.
The funny thing about this move is that Ryan is now more likely to end up being President.
If both Trump and Pence end up resigning before January, he very likely will be.
And if it looks like this is the path for the GOP to hold the presidency, the pressure will be there…
His chances have improved, but they’re still pretty low. Here’s why:
https://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/paul-ryan-favorable-rating
Those bad ratings will soften (at least on the GOP side) as he no longer looks like a Trump enemy. …but I was referring to become president via the 25th amendment.
I realize that. I mean he doesn’t look like a savior to Republicans with ratings like that. They hate Trump but cling to him because his favorability ratings are high; they’ll avoid Ryan while his ratings are low. This move won’t improve them in the short term.
What makes you think Pence would resign with Trump? What makes you think Trump would resign in the first place? I agree Ryan’s chances of a 25th Amendment ascension increased — from about 0.1% to 0.9%. I simply can’t envision a set of circumstances under which Trump would leave and, if Pence somehow got the job — a health crisis seems to me the more probably path for that — he can fight removal until the 2020 election.
As to the future, you’re right, the Trump taint will fade. Remember, Ryan is young and nothing if not ambitious in a Dunning Kruger kind of way. His best chance of being president, if he’s so impervious to experience that he’d still want the job, is re-emerging Nixon-like in 2028 or so.
Charles Pierce gives Ryan a send-off by citing one of Joe Biden’s finest hours: His vice-presidential debate against Ryan in 2012, when, repeatedly, he literally laughed in Ryan’s face.
@A “What makes you think Pence would resign with Trump?”
It depends on what brings down Trump. If it’s Russian collusion, then Pence is surely gone too. He was in the room. Just look at the photos…
And if this happens, then the GOP has to be careful, or it will lose the presidency. If Dems have a really good election, then it would be not to hard to imagine a President Pelosi or a President Schumer. To protect the presidency, the GOP would need push both Trump and Pence out sooner than January… thus President Ryan.
Sounds like a TV show plot. None of that happens with Republicans in control of one chamber of Congress.
Russian collusion can only bring Trump down if he is impeached. He won’t be. But even if Trump resigns for some reason, why would Pence? On noble principle? Pence could claim he knew about hardly any of this and ride out the storm until 2020.
Most of the GOP will be perfectly happy with Pence. They will see no need to push him out. They’re not suddenly going to forswear relying on bullshit to accomplish their aims, so they’ll try to bullshit people in favor of Pence as soon as they move against Trump, if they ever do.
Impeachment is a slow process. There’s no way it’s accomplished before November, no matter who the target is.
Look at the photos!
Well, it worked on Al Franken.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/what-can-collapse-whig-party-tell-us-about-todays-politics-180958729/
The Whigs died.
So did the dodo bird. Beyond death, there’s no reason to bring up the Whigs. They were progressive by the standards of their time.
Ryan has a plan. He won’t have to run for President. Pence could go down with Trump cuz he was in charge of transition and vetting cabinet proving his bad judgement. GOP doesn’t like McCarthy, so it may be Scalise leaving the Presidency to Paul Ryan.
There were two groups of Whigs Alby, my point was the death of the Whigs.
Yes, I know it was. My point was that bringing it up was lowering the level of the discourse. You could have used the Know-Nothings, which would have been more apt for a number of obvious reasons.
You wrote, “GOP after Trump will turn into the party of Whigs.” As written, it makes no sense, as the Whigs “turned into” the Republicans in the first place.
If you’re going to post comments, at least make them entertaining or enlightening.
“Ryan has a plan. He won’t have to run for President. Pence could go down with Trump cuz he was in charge of transition and vetting cabinet proving his bad judgement. GOP doesn’t like McCarthy, so it may be Scalise leaving the Presidency to Paul Ryan.”
This is a restatement of something Liberal Elite wrote earlier today, and it’s no more sensible or likely a thing to say now that you’ve dumbed it down for us and turned it from idle speculation into Ryan’s “plan,” as if you have fucking clue one what Paul fucking Ryan thinks. Please.
“The Whigs turned into the Republicans” is a massive oversimplification
But “the Republicans after Trump will be the Whigs” isn’t. Do catch up.
@A “…None of that happens with Republicans in control of one chamber of Congress.”
Not true. It all depends on the circumstances. The House alone chooses a vacant President. The Senate alone chooses a vacant Vice President.
@A “Impeachment is a slow process. There’s no way it’s accomplished before November, no matter who the target is.”
And that’s why I said the GOP may want to push them both out. Let’s say the GOP has a disastrous fall election (exactly as predicted), and then let’s also assume that the wheels of justice turns slowly, but the writing’s on the wall (that’s not so unlikely). Then, the GOP will be begging for resignations from both Trump and Pence to get a “safe” President Ryan. Otherwise, they’ll soon get a Democrat, instead…
And you think either Trump or Pence would fall on his sword to save the Republican Party, let alone both? You have a very active imagination.
The chances of this are so slim I can’t fathom even dreaming up such a scenario. At least when you bet on a 99-1 shot at the races, there’s an actual chance of winning some money if it happens. This just sounds like something people who enjoy panicking dreamt up to justify panicking. Why borrow trouble?
I’m assuming that Trump wants his business empire to survive, and that Pence actually cares about the GOP. Yea… Big assumptions.
@ LE, ” If Dems have a really good election, then it would be not to hard to imagine a President Pelosi or a President Schumer. ”
Im firmly in the “thanks for your service, now enjoy your retirement” camp on Pelosi, but FFFUUUUUUCCCKK YES on that. SO many rwnjs would die of an instant rage stroke, the GOP would be gutted back to a few shitty states we don’t really even need.
Nothing like the smell of a Whig controversy in the morning! The Whigs arose in opposition to Andrew Jackson. Jackson was more or less the Trump of his time. Score 1 (and more) for the Whigs.
@LE: This scenario of yours is ridiculous. Do you really think that at this point Trump could just walk away and everyone would say, “Well, then, no need to prosecute you now!” Trump’s “business empire” is already dead. Mike Pence is a Dominionist. He thinks all this has been ordained by Jesus Christ his Personal Lord and Savior. Once Jesus puts him in power, you think he’d quit to “save the party”?
You really don’t want to let this fantasy go, clearly. Have fun with it. Don’t bet your house on it is my advice.
I knew I should should have stated my own church.