# Paul Ryan not running for re-election **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 11, 2018, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210 "2018-04-11T12:35:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/41 "2018-04-11T18:11:59Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Then why do people keep saying the voters elected Trump when they know that’s not how it works? Because voters choose the electors. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/42 "2018-04-11T18:23:46Z")
> [@D\_Anconia](#): > > Because voters choose the electors. Right. So let’s not pretend that means Trump has a mandate. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/43 "2018-04-11T18:34:24Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > This gets sadder every time I read it and now it’s twice in this thread. > > Being a lightning rod is half the job. People wouldn’t be wishing ass cancer on Ryan’s children if he was still happily sitting on the Ways and Means Committee. I know, that’s why I feel conflicted. Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![D\_Anconia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@D\_Anconia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Anconia)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/44 "2018-04-11T18:36:22Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Right. So let’s not pretend that means Trump has a mandate. I didn’t say he did. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/45 "2018-04-11T18:38:39Z")
With Ryan out, the chances of an open white supremacist (Paul Nehlen) being nominated to replace him go up considerably: > **[Paul Ryan’s Retirement Gives a Big Boost to the Most Prominent White...](https://www.thedailybeast.com/paul-ryans-retirement-gives-a-big-boost-to-the-most-prominent-white-nationalist-in-us-politics)** > > Paul Nehlen was banned from Twitter. Then he was banned from the Twitter of the Alt Right. Now, he’s well positioned to be the GOP nominee in Wisconsin’s 1st District ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/46 "2018-04-11T18:38:50Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > OK. But the bottom line is that you’re calling him “one of the most politically cowardly men in US high office in a long, long time” for failing to do something that has never been done by anyone, ever. I’m not sure what you mean by saying that nobody has done something, ever. Are you talking about members of Congress calling out a President of their own party for saying nice things about KKK protesters? Because, yeah, that sort of thing never happened during the Jim Crowe era, but I think it’s probably the right thing to do now. And what Ryan said about Trump’s comments were like a half-percent more critical than saying, “The President misspoke.” That’s a total sell-out. > [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Right. So let’s not pretend that means Trump has a mandate. Psst… keep in mind that half the posters you’re addressing with these comments actually believe that Trump won the biggest landslide ever. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/47 "2018-04-11T18:39:20Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Right. So let’s not pretend that means Trump has a mandate. What the hell does that have to do with anything? He’s President and it doesn’t mean jack whether you or I think he has this magical “mandate”, whatever that means. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/48 "2018-04-11T18:45:56Z")
Apropos of my earlier comments here, see: [A Congressman’s Profanity Laced Tirade in a Safeway Grocery Store](https://www.themaven.net/theresurgent/erick-erickson/a-congressman-s-profanity-laced-tirade-in-a-safeway-grocery-store-SeHI2l5bIECGQn4gmnzGaw/?mc_cid=10d8170a1d&mc_eid=3cc50e048e&full=1) ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/49 "2018-04-11T18:58:47Z")
> [@Fotheringay-Phipps](#): > > Apropos of my earlier comments here, see: [A Congressman’s Profanity Laced Tirade in a Safeway Grocery Store](https://www.themaven.net/theresurgent/erick-erickson/a-congressman-s-profanity-laced-tirade-in-a-safeway-grocery-store-SeHI2l5bIECGQn4gmnzGaw/?mc_cid=10d8170a1d&mc_eid=3cc50e048e&full=1) I read that earlier today; that guy’s a coward too. Lots of cowards putting party and political expediency over moral duty; Ryan was just the most senior among them. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/50 "2018-04-11T19:13:31Z")
Not too surprised to see Ryan deciding not to run for reelection. He wasn’t terribly eager to be Speaker in the first place, and having that gig with a President like this and a fractious House GOP caucus is the very definition of a sucky, thankless job. > [@DCnDC](#): > > …Anybody who worships Ayn Rand is a fucking idiot… Here ya go: [https://www.forwardprogressives.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ayn-rand-jesus-christ.jpg](https://www.forwardprogressives.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/ayn-rand-jesus-christ.jpg) > [@Gyrate](#): > > …And where was this devotion to the will of the public during the previous administration (you know, the one actually elected by a plurality of voters)? Outright majorities both times, actually. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/51 "2018-04-11T19:19:09Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Psst… keep in mind that half the posters you’re addressing with these comments actually believe that Trump won the biggest landslide ever. Oh? Who would that be? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/52 "2018-04-11T19:19:19Z")
> [@](#): > > Quoth **Fotheringay-Phipps** : > > IMO, Paul Ryan is one of the finest people in all of politics. Unfortunately, dealing with an impossible situation. The “impossible situation” he’s dealing with is his party controlling all three branches of government. It’s as much his own fault as anyone else’s (more so, actually) for why he was in that situation. And if Republicans controlling everything is so impossible, then let’s damn well vote out all of the Republicans. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/53 "2018-04-11T19:47:30Z")
_Ryan: Oh my god! The bus is out of control! We’re pointed straight toward the edge of a cliff! Who is driving? Assistant: You are, Paul. You are sitting in the driver’s seat. You have the keys. You can steer, accelerate, and brake. Just make a decision and take action. Ryan: Well, I guess the only thing to do is jump off and hope for the best. See you guys in 2020! Jeronimo! Passenger: Did he realize the bus wasn’t in motion? Assistant: It’s all a matter of perspective. Ryan: Hey, guys, my mistake. We weren’t actually moving. Can I get back on the bus now? Assistant: See what I mean?_ Stranger ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/54 "2018-04-11T19:48:41Z")
Personally I’m inclined to think that a president elected by “split decision” (where the popular vote goes one way and the electoral the other) should at least govern as if he were cognizant of that fact. (Of course, there appears to be so much that trump is not cognizant of that it’s no surprise that this is one of those things.) ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/55 "2018-04-11T19:52:52Z")
> [@E-DUB](#): > > Personally I’m inclined to think that a president elected by “split decision” (where the popular vote goes one way and the electoral the other) should at least govern as if he were cognizant of that fact. (Of course, there appears to be so much that trump is not cognizant of that it’s no surprise that this is one of those things.) You are forgetting about the “three to five million illegal voters” that caused Trump to lose the popular vote. Otherwise, he would have won by the same landslide margin by which he won the Electoral College, as indicated the record breaking attendance at his cloud-free inauguration ceremony. Next, let me list all of amazing promises he has satisfied and ground-breaking legislation that has been passed in his first year in office. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/56 "2018-04-11T20:17:54Z")
Hence the “not cognizant” part of my post. ---
**Author:** ![Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/13edae/32.png) [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stranger_On_A_Train)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/57 "2018-04-11T20:18:43Z")
[_Vox_: “House Speaker Paul Ryan was the biggest fraud in American politics”](https://www.vox.com/2018/4/11/17223942/house-speaker-paul-ryan-fraud) “Good riddance,” indeed, if we are actually rid of him. Stranger ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/58 "2018-04-11T20:23:41Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Oh? Who would that be? Let’s take a poll of how many posters rely on Fox News for information. I’d imagine it is high correlation with those. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/59 "2018-04-11T20:26:20Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > Next, let me list all of amazing promises he has satisfied and ground-breaking legislation that has been passed in his first year in office. > > Stranger Maybe he didn’t fulfill all his promises because he’s cognizant of the fact that his split decision election means he doesn’t have a mandate. You guys should be happy. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2018, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210/60 "2018-04-11T20:29:02Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > Let’s take a poll of how many posters rely on Fox News for information. I’d imagine it is high correlation with those. In other words, you have no idea if half the posters Fear Itself was addressing actually believe that Trump won the biggest landslide ever. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/paul-ryan-not-running-for-re-election/812210.md?page=4)