Wisconsin House speaker: "We are Ryan Republicans, not Trump Republicans"
On Friday morning, before Donald Trump's campaign rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly, Robin Vos, posted an op-ed greeting him with the words, "Welcome to Wisconsin, Mr. Trump, but let's get something straight - we are Ryan Republicans here in Wisconsin, not Trump Republicans."
Vos went on to say of Trump, "I'm embarrassed that he's leading our ticket," in the opinion piece posted on RightWisconsin.com. The Assembly speaker objects in particular to Trump's unwillingness to endorse Ryan before the Wisconsin primary, which is Tuesday. Ryan does not appear to be in much danger of losing the primary -- he's popular not only in his district, but also statewide.
Still, Vos slammed Trump for his "kind words" for Paul Ryan's primary opponent, Paul Nehlen, declaring that "it revealed a lack of judgement [SIC] from our nominee that I just cannot look away from or forgive."
Trump tweeted this earlier in the week, after Nehlen had praised Trump.
Thanks to @pnehlen for your kind words, very much appreciated.
-- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 1, 2016
Vos called on Trump to admit he'd made a mistake in "supporting a bigot like Paul Nehlen, who said we should ban a religion." Trump has not endorsed Nehlen. And of Ryan, Trump said that he's "not there yet" on an endorsement, an echo of Ryan, who had said the same thing when he didn't immediately endorse Trump, once he had clinched the GOP nomination.
The top Republicans in the state are all skipping the Trump rally Friday. Gov. Scott Walker, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, will be touring flood damage in the northern part of the state, while Paul Ryan will be in his district, and Sen. Ron Johnson cited "prior commitments," according to the Journal Sentinel.
Their lack of participation isn't surprising -- Ted Cruz walloped Trump in the Wisconsin primary and the statement Trump issued after his loss insulted the winner, the governor and the state's Republicans. "Lyin' Ted Cruz had the Governor of Wisconsin, many conservative talk radio show hosts, and the entire party apparatus behind him," the campaign's statement that night read.
Walker's eventual endorsement of Trump was a tepid one, and after Trump withheld his endorsement of Ryan, Walker immediately tweeted that he stood with Ryan.
We stand with Paul Ryan! pic.twitter.com/O16vThk5dA
— Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) August 3, 2016
On Thursday, Walker expressed frustration with the GOP nominee's messaging, as stories about Trump's remarks about the parents of Capt. Humayun Khan continued to dominate the news.
"What's frustrating to me is I wish Donald Trump would just talk about Hillary Clinton, and what he's going to do to make everyday Americans' lives better," Walker told WISN's "Jay Weber Show."
Walker also made it clear he's not with Trump on his comments about the Khans. "I will never question a Gold Star family on anything," Walker said. "They deserve our respect." Johnson has explicitly called on Trump to apologize to the Khan family.