Former presidential candidate Ben Carson said Tuesday Donald Trump and Paul Ryan need to focus on their own November goals and stop feuding.
Carson, a pediatric neurosurgeon who was part of the crowded field of Republicans who ran for president before Trump became the nominee over the summer, spoke to The Hill about Trump's Twitter assault on Ryan after the House Speaker said he will no longer publicly campaign for Trump.
"Paul Ryan is being very pragmatic," Carson told the website. "He recognizes that if Donald Trump loses, Hillary Clinton needs a firewall so she can't do whatever she wants. He wants to make sure to keep the firewall there, so he's devoting his energy to doing that."
Regarding the "firewall," Carson was referring to Ryan's pledge to continue to help Republicans retain control of the House and Senate.
Trump blasted the speaker in a series of tweets Tuesday. Carson said the real estate mogul has better things he should be doing.
"The way forward is for them to both pursue their respective goals," Carson said. "Trump should concentrate on the issues and stop allowing himself to be dragged off into the hinterlands … Let Paul Ryan concentrate on the House. It's critical, you need that fail-safe mechanism.
"He'll realize soon enough that he shouldn't be attacking Ryan and that his energy needs to be on the issues, because that's how he wins. If he would concentrate on those things, he would win in a walk. It's hard for him."
Trump has lost public support from several Republicans after a 2005 video of him talking about kissing and trying to have sex with women who were not his wife surfaced last week.