Breaking news: Prominent Republican’s Troll of Fellow Republican Is Nothing Personal.
Rep. Paul Ryan, the Republican budget-turned-tax wonk and 2012 vice-presidential nominee, has announced that he won’t seek the White House in 2016.
“It is amazing the amount of encouragement I have gotten from people — from friends and supporters — but I feel like I am in a position to make a big difference where I am and I want to do that,” he told NBC News. Ryan is now chairman of the powerful tax-writing Ways & Means Committee, after using his leadership of the Budget Committee to prominently advance a conservative fiscal agenda.
He added this statement on his Facebook account Monday:
“After giving it a lot of thought, I’ve decided not to run for president. Our work at the House Ways and Means Committee over the next few years will be crucial to moving America forward, and my job as Chairman deserves undivided attention. It’s clear our country needs a change in direction. And our party has a responsibility to offer a real alternative. So I’m going to do what I can to lay out conservative solutions and to help our nominee lead us to victory.”
Predictably, Ryan didn’t voice his support of any possible 2016 contender — but now that one Wisconsin Republican has removed his name from the race, attention will certainly turn to another. Gov. Scott Walker, who has emphatically withstood challenges to his budget agenda and tough stance on unions, has earned considerable buzz for a potential run.
CNN reported late last week that Walker had hired a seasoned political operative and was planning to launch a leadership PAC in preparation for testing the waters.
