House Speaker Paul Ryan found himself in another awkward predicament about justifying his allegiance to presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
During a town hall session with CNN on Tuesday, Ryan was asked why he would still continue to support Trump, even though they differ on a number of issues. Ryan defended his support of the media mogul by saying it’s either him or Hillary Clinton, and he’s loyal to his party, calling it a “binary choice.” It’s a simple stock answer for one of the top ranking Republicans, and he seems to be aiming towards his best for the party.
As the town hall progressed, the questions became a bit dicier. When asked how can he morally justify supporting someone like Trump, who town hall attendee Zachary Marcone called “openly racist,” Ryan sidestepped the question a bit. He reiterated his earlier statement that not voting for Trump would amount to a Clinton presidency, and electing Trump is the best way for conservatives to have their platforms signed into law.
When the topic of whether the Republican party was looking to replace Trump as nominee, Ryan stated it’s not his job as the chairman of the Republican National Convention to tell the delegates who they need to choose.
One issue he did come out and say he doesn’t support Trump on is banning Muslims from the U.S. Throughout the town hall, Ryan continued to say while he doesn’t support Trump’s views, electing him is best for the party:
“In the balance of things, the good clearly outweighs the things I don’t agree with. We don’t have people who run for office who 100% reflect all of our views. It doesn’t work like that.”
Ryan was composed during the town hall and delivered the right answers to appease those that attended. It’s no secret that Ryan is apprehensive supporting Trump, but he seems to be a tricky predicament. On one hand, he is trying to guide the GOP back to prominence, he doesn’t seem comfortable having Trump be that vessel.
(Via CNN)