House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., sought to end speculation Tuesday that he will emerge as the eventual Republican presidential nominee.
“Let me be clear: I do not want, nor will I accept, the nomination for our party,” Ryan said, speaking at the Republican National Committee’s headquarters in Washington.
In a direct statement to the delegates who will attend this summer’s Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ryan said, “I believe you should only choose from a person who has actually participated in the primary. Count me out.”
“I simply believe that if you want to be the nominee — to be the president — you should actually run for it. I chose not to. Therefore, I should not be considered. Period,” he said.
For the past two weeks, pundits and politicians have been spinning scenarios in which Ryan, dubbed a “mirage candidate” by the New York Times, could emerge as a consensus candidate at the convention if the Republicans opposed to front-runner Donald Trump are able to block his efforts to win the convention on the first ballot. Scenarios of an “open” or “brokered” convention call for nominating someone other than either Trump or Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, given the antipathy between the camps of the two leading candidates makes it unlikely one will support the other.
Ryan said he will continue to make public statements, but said they are focused on developing a policy agenda for the party’s eventual nominee in areas such as health care, taxes, poverty and job creation.
Republican lawmakers said the nomination should go to a candidate from among Trump, Cruz and Ohio Gov. John Kasich.
“I think it’s simply nonsense that someone outside of the three people running for this nomination are going to be nominated at this convention,” Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., told CNN’s John Berman on At This Hour. “It’s just nonsense. One of the three will be our nominee, and I know there are some people who think there is going to be this through-the-looking-glass-moment for Paul Ryan or perhaps others, but it’s simply not going to happen.”
