US House Speaker Paul Ryan to retire and spend time with family
The US House Speaker Paul Ryan told Republicans in the House of Representatives yesterday that he will not seek re-election in November.
Mr Ryan will serve his full term and retire in January, said Brendan Buck, the speaker’s spokesman.
“After nearly 20 years in the House, 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,” Mr Buck said.
The departure of Mr Ryan, 48, could complicate Republican efforts to retain the House in November, when candidates may be affected by President Donald Trump’s unpopularity.
The announcement of his departure months before the election will give potential candidates for House Republican leadership positions plenty of time to campaign for support.
Reports of Mr Ryan’s departure have circulated for months. Politico reported in December that he had told confidants he would like to retire after congressional elections this year.
Friends said Mr Ryan, a longtime champion of tax reform, was ready to step down after passing a tax reform bill, according to the Axios news site.
The tax bill was Mr Trump’s first major legislative victory since he took office in January last year despite being helped by Republican control of Congress.
Legislators had expected Mr Ryan might leave Congress if Republicans lost the House in November. The early announcement could have an effect on Mr Ryan’s ability to raise campaign funds for Republican candidates.
More than three dozen House Republicans have said they are retiring, or running for another office, or resigning. Democrats need to win 23 seats in the November elections to retake a majority in the House, controlled by Republicans since 2011.
Democrats believe that voter concern over rising medical costs and Republican plans to cut Medicare and Medicaid will assist them in their fight to retake the House.
Mr Trump said in a post on Twitter: “Speaker Paul Ryan is a truly good man, and while he will not be seeking re-election, he will leave a legacy of achievement that nobody can question. We are with you Paul.”
Mr Ryan was elected to the US House of Representatives in 1998 from Wisconsin at age 28 and quickly pegged as a rising star. He became 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s vice presidential running mate, but Mr Romney was beaten by incumbent president Barack Obama.
In Congress, Mr Ryan earned a reputation as a fiscal policy expert, serving as chairman of the House Budget Committee from 2011 until 2015. As speaker, he was a driving force behind a Republican tax overhaul passed by Congress last year.