Former President Donald Trump and former House Speaker Paul Ryan renewed their feud over the future of the Republican Party after Ryan’s Thursday speech on conservative principles, The Washington Post reports.
Ryan did not mention Trump by name during a speech at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif., but he focused on the former president’s grip on the GOP.
"Once again, we conservatives find ourselves at a crossroads," the former Wisconsin congressman said. "And here's one reality we have to face: If the conservative cause depends on the populist appeal of one personality or on second-rate imitations, then we're not going anywhere.”
Ryan said it was “horrifying” to see a presidency come to a "dishonorable and disgraceful end.”
He also called out Republicans subservient to Trump.
"Voters looking for Republican leaders want to see independence and mettle," he said. "They will not be impressed by the sight of yes-men and flatterers flocking to Mar-a-Lago."
Trump hits back:
Trump on his blog called Ryan a Republican in Name Only and a “curse to the Republican Party.”
“It was the day that Ryan went on the board of Fox (Fox will never be the same!) that Fox totally lost its way and became a much different place, with millions of its greatest supporters fleeing for good,” Trump said. “Paul Ryan has been a curse to the Republican Party. He has no clue as to what needs to be done for our Country, was a weak and ineffective leader, and spends all of his time fighting Republicans as opposed to Democrats who are destroying our Country.”
“As a Republican, having Paul Ryan on your side almost guarantees a loss, for both you, the Party, and America itself! he added.
GOP rift:
The feud underscores the rift inside the Republican Party, albeit a small one since few elected Republicans outside of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger have been particularly critical of the former president.
And despite Ryan’s criticism of Trump, he reserved plenty for President Joe Biden as well.
“In 2020, the country wanted a nice guy who would move to the center and depolarize our politics,” Ryan said. “Instead, we got a nice guy pursuing an agenda more leftist than any president in my lifetime.”
