GOP vice presidential candidate, Gov. Mike Pence, refused to say if House Speaker Paul Ryan should be re-elected to his position in an interview Thursday.
"In our interview," wrote Tim Alberta of the National Review, "Pence declined three times to answer the question of whether Ryan should be reelected as speaker. 'My respect for Paul Ryan is boundless,' he says, repeating it twice. 'I'm not a member of the House Republican conference anymore. I wouldn't presume upon what the members of the conference choose.'"
Afterwards, according to the Review, Pence's senior advisor clarified that if Pence were still in the House, he would vote for Ryan's reelection.
Pence has diverged from his running mate Donald Trump over Ryan, who Trump publicly feuded with over the GOP candidate's rhetoric and behavior. Pence has been more supportive of the House Speaker, saying "I believe we need Paul Ryan in leadership in the Congress of the United States," on Fox News in August after Trump refused to endorse Ryan in his primary challenge.
According to Politico, members of the House Freedom Caucus, which helped instigate former Speaker John Boehner's exit from the role, met behind closed doors on Wednesday to discuss supporting Ryan in exchange for a low-ranking role in the leadership.