JANESVILLE, Wis. — House Speaker Paul Ryan said he plans to work closely with President-elect Donald Trump to implement an ambitious conservative agenda, made possible by Trump pulling off “the most incredible political feat I have seen in my lifetime.”
Ryan, addressing the media Wednesday in his hometown of Janesville, said he’s spoken with Trump twice in the past 18 hours. He lauded Trump for helping the GOP keep majorities in the U.S. House and Senate, which now gives Republicans control of both the executive and legislative branches.
“The opportunity is now here. The opportunity is to go big, go bold and to get things done for the people of this country,” Ryan said.
Ryan said he plans to seek the speakership despite tensions with Trump and many of his supporters.
After initially withholding his endorsement of the Republican nominee after the GOP convention, Ryan endorsed Trump. But following the release of a 2005 video that showed Trump suggesting he can sexually assault women because of his star status, Ryan did not campaign for Trump in the weeks leading up to the election.
Ryan said his relationship with Trump is “fine,” and when asked about their squabbles, Ryan replied, “I don’t worry about things like that.” It’s expected that some in the House will push Trump to support a new speaker, though Trump could use an ally like Ryan on Capitol Hill to work with establishment Republicans. Trump hasn’t commented publicly on whether he plans to push for Ryan’s ouster.
“I think we’re going to hit the ground running,” Ryan said. “We had great conversations about how we work together.”
If he continues as House speaker, Ryan will have to bridge two factions in the Republican Party: more traditional conservatives and the populist wing that largely boosted Trump to the White House.
“The key here is not only to unify and merge these approaches,” Ryan said, “but to also invite everyone else in the country to get us focused on our solutions. What I see here is great potential.”
Despite his pre-election reticence toward Trump, Ryan praised the president-elect for carrying Wisconsin’s 10 electoral votes — the first Republican to do so since 1984 — and helping down-ticket candidates.
“Our House majority is bigger than expected. We won more seats than anyone expected,” Ryan said. “And much of that is thanks to Donald Trump.”
The across-the-board victories, Ryan said, give Republicans a mandate to institute change.
“It showed that people don’t like the direction we were going,” he said.
Asked about citizens who fear Trump will erode civil liberties, particularly in light of his statements about keeping Muslims out of the U.S. amid terrorism fears, Ryan sought to assuage voters. He pointed to Trump’s list of potential U.S. Supreme Court nominees, calling them judges who “actually respect the rule of law, that respect the Constitution.”
“For those people who are concerned, this is the time to unify. This is the time to heal,” Ryan said. “And our president-elect, I think he set the right tone last night with his speech, which was to be magnanimous, to be presidential and to bring people together.”