Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus predicted Friday that Speaker Paul Ryan will “get there” and ultimately back Donald Trump as the party nominee, despite his reluctance to do so yesterday.
Priebus told Politico’s Mike Allen Friday morning that ultimately Ryan is “just being honest with how he feels” at the moment and wants some time to work through it. He also said that Trump’s nomination was sudden on Tuesday for many within the party who had expected Sen. Ted Cruz to keep campaigning for another month.
“I think Paul’s just being honest with how he feels. I think he’s going to get there,” Priebus said. “He just wants some time to just work through it.”
The RNC chairman also confirmed that a meeting is set for next week between the two, which was previously scheduled, and that it will go on.
“Yeah I do, I talked to [Ryan] multiple times yesterday, and he wants it to go forward,” Priebus said. “And, look, I’m being honest, he says he’s not there yet but he wants to get there. So, yes, he will meet.”
Priebus acknowledged that Trump called him within minutes of Ryan’s declaration, but told him to “relax” and “be gracious” as he works as a go-between for the two.
“It wasn’t like furious or anything. It was ‘what do I need to do,'” Priebus said. I said, ‘listen, my view is just relax and be gracious and I’ll talk to Paul and we’ll try to work on this.'”
“I know Paul really well, and I know he’s being honest, and I know how he feels. So I’m comfortable with the idea that it’s going to take some time in some cases for people to work through differences,” Priebus said.
The RNC chairman also continued to push back against the presumptive nominee’s plan to ban Muslim entry into the United States, said it’s “not something … our party believes in.”
“I put a statement out already that it’s not something I believe in or our party believes in,” he said of the Muslim ban. “Our party is the party of the open door. Our party is the party of opportunity and freedom and equality and it always will remain such.”
