In A Blow To John Kasich, John Boehner Endorses Paul Ryan For President

Paul Ryan

There is the idea that the GOP convention could be one that is “open” (brokered is not actually the correct term) as opposed to “contested.” The last time there was a contested convention was when Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford both arrived at the Republican National Convention without the necessary number of delegates to clinch the nomination. Gerald Ford was selected in the first ballot vote, marking the only time, ironically, that Ronald Reagan was beaten in a head to head election.

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There is the possibility of an open convention this year, though it is not likely. Former House Speaker John Boehner has already caused a stir by saying if there is nobody chose on the first ballot, then Paul Ryan should be the GOP nominee for President:

Former Speaker John Boehner said Paul Ryan should be the Republican nominee for president if the party fails to choose a candidate on the first ballot.

“If we don’t have a nominee who can win on the first ballot, I’m for none of the above,” Boehner said at the Futures Industry Association conference here. “They all had a chance to win. None of them won. So I’m for none of the above. I’m for Paul Ryan to be our nominee.”

Wading into the GOP nominating battle for the first time since leaving office last fall, Boehner said that “anybody can be nominated” at the convention in Cleveland this summer.

Boehner, who now splits his time between Florida, Ohio and D.C., had long whispered to friends that he believes Ryan could be the party’s political savior if it came to that.

But Boehner never said it publicly until now.

He also doesn’t like Ted Cruz all that much:

In the same question-and-answer session here, Boehner referred to Ted Cruz as “lucifer.” He previously called the Texas senator, who led the failed Republican effort to shut down the government over Obamacare, a “jackass.”

Unfortunately for Boehner, Paul Ryan has already declined:

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Ryan and his staff say he doesn’t want the nomination.

“The speaker is grateful for the support, but he is not interested,” said Ryan spokesman AshLee Strong. “He will not accept a nomination and believes our nominee should be someone who ran this year.”

On Tuesday, Ryan told CNBC that he was happy serving as speaker of the House.

“I’m not running for president,” Ryan said. “I made that decision, consciously, not to. I don’t see that happening. I’m not thinking about it. I’m happy where I am, so no.”

Seconds later, Ryan said he hadn’t given “any thought” to a contested convention, and “a lot of people” are running for president.”

Considering Donald Trump is already saying there will be riots if he does not get the nomination, this news from Ryan is somewhat disappointing.

 

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