Former House Speaker Paul Ryan said Tuesday that Republicans will lose the presidential election if Donald Trump is the nominee and that he expects far-right Trump supporters to force a government shutdown within a few weeks. days .
Ryan, who left office in 2019 and had a sometimes contentious relationship with Trump, said he hoped another Republican candidate would gain enough momentum early next year to surpass trump after the first primaries. Ryan represented southeastern Wisconsin in Congress for 20 years, the last four as president.
“The party that presents the first new face wins this election,” Ryan said at an event on the University of Wisconsin campus hosted by the Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs.
If the race is between Trump and President Joe Biden, Ryan said, “I think Biden wins.”
“I think leaders should strive to be honest, ethical and moral people who try to set standards for themselves and lead by example across the country,” Ryan said. “Donald Trump is not trying to do any of that. Frankly, he does the complete opposite. So he just doesn't think he's fit for the job here.”
Ryan said that in the small number of undecided states including Wisconsin, the election will come down to winning over suburban voters.
“Do you think suburban voters like Donald Trump more since January 6?” Ryan said. “I mean, my God. "They didn't vote for him this last time, they're not going to vote for him again."
Ryan also had harsh words about Trump supporters in Congress, who he said were not interested in governing or finding a solution to avoid a government shutdown.
But with just five days left until Saturday's government shutdown deadline, the Senate is trying to avoid a federal shutdown as far-right lawmakers take control of the House. The senators announced a provisional measure bipartisan to keep the offices funded temporarily, until November 17, to buy time for Congress to finish its work.
Ryan was speaker of the House during the last government shutdown in 2018, which lasted a record 36 days.
"There's a group of people that I think feel like this is in their best interest," Ryan said of a closure. “So I'm afraid that's going to happen.”
Ryan blamed Republicans in Congress for not proposing an alternative.
"It's nihilism, that's what it is," he said. “We look stupid. It seems that we cannot govern.”
