Congressman Paul Ryan confirmed Thursday he will run for the speaker’s gavel, capping a tumultuous week in which every faction of House GOP warmed to the reluctant candidate.
“I never thought I’d be speaker. But I pledged to you that if I could be a unifying figure, then I would serve — I would go all in,” the Wisconsin Republican wrote in a letter to colleagues. “After talking with so many of you, and hearing your words of encouragement, I believe we are ready to move forward as a one, united team. And I am ready and eager to be our speaker.”
Blessings from the centrist Tuesday Group and influential Republican Study Committee cleared the decks for Mr. Ryan to replace the current speaker, John A. Boehner, next week and curtail a spell of chaos that’s dogged the GOP for much of October.
Earlier this week, he earned qualified support from the House Freedom Caucus, a coalition of hardline conservatives who nudged Mr. Boehner out the door and derailed Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s short-lived bid for the post.
Mr. Ryan had been reluctant to give up his role as head of the tax-writing Ways and Means Committee and precious weekends with his family, so he demanded support from every wing of the party by Friday.
On Thursday, he said he was satisfied that enough members had rallied around his vision to cure what ails Capitol Hill.
“Instead of rising to the occasion, Washington is falling short — including the House of Representatives. We are not solving the country’s problems; we are only adding to them,” he wrote. “But now, we have an opportunity to turn the page, to start with a clean slate, and to rebuild what has been lost. We can make the House a more open and inclusive body — one where every member can contribute to the legislative process.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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