U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan said on Thursday that his support of Donald Trump was “not a blank check,” in response to the Republican presidential candidate’s refusal to endorse him.
Ryan spoke on The Jerry Bader Show on WTAQ in Wisconsin a couple of days after Trump echoed the speaker’s comments in May when he said he was “just not ready” to endorse Trump.
“I like Paul,” Trump told the Washington Post on Aug. 2, before Ryan faces off in a primary against Wisconsin businessman Paul Nehlen.
“But these are horrible times for our country. We need very strong leadership. We need very, very strong leadership. And I’m just not quite there. I’m not quite there yet,” said Trump.
Ryan, who endorsed Trump in June, said it was important to take into consideration the will of the primary voters, and that he will speak up when he disagrees with Trump.
“We are a party where the grassroots Republican primary voter selects our nominee and that’s as it should be and that it what it is. I think there’s something to be said about respecting those voters,” Ryan said.
