House Freedom Caucus chairman Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican, repeatedly did not answer a question about whether Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan should stay on as speaker of the House.
"That's a question for down the road," Jordan told reporter John Harwood in a CNBC interview.
When Harwood pointed out Jordan appeared unwilling to say whether Ryan should keep his position, Jordan replied, "I'm not saying anything. I'm just saying, 'Look, Paul Ryan's a good man, he's a friend, but we are focused on getting Donald Trump elected and being the next president of the United States.'"
The chairman said the Caucus will look at other issues after the election while President Barack Obama is still in office: "There's time to deal with who's in leadership, who may not be in leadership, how leadership is done, what the rules are, what we're going to focus on in the lame-duck."
When the CNBC host asked him again, Jordan said, "That is a question for another day. That is a question for the House Republican conference. And that is a question that will be dealt with in due time."
Jordan said he and his Freedom Caucus colleagues were not focused on Ryan's job performance, and reiterated his focus on helping the Republican candidate get elected.
Harwood pointed out Trump himself had called Ryan ineffective, and Jordan said there would be "plenty of time to talk about that" after the election.
Ryan's relationship with conservatives in the House has been fraying, according to The Huffington Post. In August, a group of conservatives met to look into forcing Ryan out in a coup.
Jordan resisted commenting on Ryan throughout the interview. When asked whether anyone had discussed Ryan resigning and not seeking another term as speaker, Jordan said, "You'd have to ask Speaker Ryan."
Politico reported Freedom Caucus members could not agree among themselves whether to oust Ryan.
In a different interview vice presidential nominee Indiana Gov. Mike Pence also declined to answer whether Ryan should remain speaker.
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