Paul Ryan is an interesting case study in just how fast a Republican’s star can fall. Sure, he’s now making tons of money sitting on the board of Fox Corp, having a heavy hand in helping run Fox News off the road for a time, but that’s still a long way off from being on the 2012 Republican presidential ticket and the Speaker of the House. Still, Ryan has ambitions, and they seem to revolve around being some kind of puppet master, molding and shaping the future of the party. How successful he’s been at that — or will be at that  — is certainly up for debate.

So where does Ryan actually want to see the party go? If his latest move is any indication, it’s nowhere good. According to Politico, who garnered a copy of the invitation, Ryan will be headlining a fundraiser for MSNBC’s favorite Republican, Rep. Adam Kinzinger.

Former House Speaker Paul Ryan will headline a fundraiser on Monday for Rep. Adam Kinzinger. It’s a decisive move against ex-President Trump, who has set his sights on Republicans who voted to impeach him. https://t.co/MbswCDjJBq pic.twitter.com/JPLpe0nFhR

— POLITICO (@politico) May 21, 2021

Yeah, I’d say Ryan is fully exposing himself at this point.

There are some things that most Republican voters are tolerant of. Promoting a grifter like Kinzinger isn’t one of them. It’s one thing to not be super pro-Trump, but it’s another to align with a guy who spends more time on liberal news networks tearing his own party down than serving in Congress. Liz Cheney learned that lesson the hard way, getting booted out of leadership, not because she disliked Trump, but because she refused to do anything but trash her own side.

Kinzinger is not some guy just standing on principle. He’s a guy who pushed the false Russian bounties story and the false story that Officer Brian Sicknick was “murdered” on January 6th (he died of natural causes the next day having suffering no trauma). Kinzinger wants to become a martyr, further endearing himself to the left in case he gets re-districted out of his seat.

Why Ryan, even if he’s not in step with most of the Republican Party, would want to get in bed with a guy like that is perplexing. It’s also just a really stupid move strategically. Putting aside whether the party needs to go in a different direction or not, there are certainly smarter ways of going about it. Stumping for Kinzinger is only going to enrage the base more while further confirming just how out of touch the old establishment is.

There is no future in the GOP for MSNBC bros who savage their own to the seal claps of the left. There just isn’t.