House Speaker Paul Ryan Won't Seek Re-Election
WASHINGTON (CBS News/CBSNewYork/AP) -- Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan says he will serve out his term before retiring in January.
Ryan made the official announcement Wednesday.
"You all know that I did not seek this job," Ryan said. "I took it reluctantly. But I have given this job everything that I have. And I have no regrets whatsoever for having accepted this responsibility."
Ryan said he realized if he stayed for one more term, "my kids will only have ever known me as a weekend dad."
"I just can't let that happen," he said.
Brendan Buck, counselor to the speaker, said in a statement that Ryan shared the news with his colleagues earlier Wednesday morning.
Buck said "the speaker is proud of all that has been accomplished and is ready to devote more of his time to being a husband and a father."
President Donald Trump on Twitter called Ryan "a truly good man" and said Ryan "will leave a legacy of achievement that nobody can question. We are with you Paul!"
In a statement, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, called Ryan "a good man who is always true to his word."
Schumer said that while they disagreed on most issues, "in the areas where we could work together I always found him to be smart, thoughtful, and straightforward."
Ryan joins the growing list of Republican House members also resigning from Congress. More than 30 Republicans in the House and Senate have announced that they plan to leave Congress by the beginning of 2019.
Many speculated that Ryan would depart political office after helping successfully champion a rewrite of the U.S. tax code. Ryan's office, however, had denied the speculation that he was leaving anytime soon. Ryan spokesperson AshLee Strong told CBS News last month that "the speaker is not resigning."
The speaker previously told CBS News' "Face the Nation" in January that he would discuss running for reelection with his family before making a decision on the matter.
"Look, if we're doing fine I have no plans of going anywhere any time soon," Ryan said. "But that's something that my wife and I always decide in late spring of the election year."
In December of last year, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said President Donald Trump had called Ryan and the president made it clear he wouldn't be happy if Ryan quit Congress.
"The Speaker assured the president that those were not accurate reports and that they look forward to working together for a long time to come," Sanders said.
Check back soon for more on this developing story.
(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
