WASHINGTON –  DNC Chair Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz issued the following statement:

“When he initially refused to endorse Trump four weeks ago, Paul Ryan said it was time to set aside bullying and belittlement. But with his tepid, halfhearted endorsement today, Ryan has backed away from his own criticisms of Trump’s dangerous, divisive campaign, bowed down, kissed the ring, and conceded that Trump is the leader of the Republican Party.
 
“Ryan’s lack of conviction isn’t exactly news though. On issue after issue, Ryan’s ideas are almost as bad as Trump’s. Both Trump and Ryan would block an increase in the minimum wage. Both have promised to defund or shutdown Planned Parenthood. Both have vowed to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which would jeopardize health care for 20 million Americans. And both men have proposed tax plans that would overwhelmingly benefit those at the top, with Trump’s going so far it would blow a $9.5 trillion hole in the deficit.
 
“The failed Romney-Ryan presidential ticket in 2012 was the catalyst for a GOP autopsy report that said Republican leaders should move the party in a new direction. Trump has soaked that report in gasoline and Paul Ryan just lit the match that’s about to turn it to ashes. 
 
“We need a president who recognizes that America’s strength is its people, and who will fight for hardworking families and expand economic opportunity to the benefit of all. That’s why we must elect a Democrat as the next president of the United States.”