--- title: Paul Ryan Won't Talk about Donald Trump description: House Speaker Paul Ryan just talked to college Republicans about the 2016 election without mentioning Donald Trump's name a single time. canonical: https://time.com/4531674/paul-ryan-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-speech/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-10-14T18:19:39.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:32.369Z article:section: Politics og:title: Paul Ryan Won't Talk about Donald Trump og:description: He just gave a 20-minute speech about the election without doing it. og:url: https://time.com/4531674/paul-ryan-donald-trump-hillary-clinton-speech/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt129514201615edf7/6988aa16524fc0703adf9ddc/paul-ryan3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Paul Ryan Addresses Waukesha County Business Alliance In Wisconsin og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Paul Ryan Won't Talk about Donald Trump twitter:description: He just gave a 20-minute speech about the election without doing it. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt129514201615edf7/6988aa16524fc0703adf9ddc/paul-ryan3.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Paul Ryan Just Gave a Speech About the Election Without Mentioning Donald Trump > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Paul Ryan Says He Won’t Defend Donald Trump [Watch (HLS stream): Paul Ryan Says He Won’t Defend Donald Trump](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/mbjioX9D.m3u8) (1:01)  _Published 2016-10-09. The nation’s most powerful Republican told his party Monday that he now is focusing on ensuring Hillary Clinton doesn’t get a blank check as president with a Democratic-controlled Congress, suggesting that he doesn’t believe Donald Trump can win._  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Oct 14, 2016 6:19 PM UTC  Speaker of the House Paul Ryan speaks with business and community leaders at the Waukesha County Business Alliance luncheon in Brookfield, Wi., on Oct. 13, 2016. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan speaks with business and community leaders at the Waukesha County Business Alliance luncheon in Brookfield, Wi., on Oct. 13, 2016. Scott Olson—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Oct 14, 2016 6:19 PM UTC House Speaker Paul Ryan just talked to college Republicans about the 2016 election without mentioning Donald Trump’s name a single time. In a 20-minute speech in Madison, Wis., the nation’s top ranking Republican made only glancing references to the nominee of his own party, noted that he “doesn’t blame” voters who want to sit out the election and argued that emphasized the risks of Democrats winning both the White House and control of Congress. When asked by a student how to pitch Republicans to skeptical liberals on campus, Ryan responded with what appeared to be a reference to Trump’s habit of tweeting attacks on his rivals. “Don’t talk about the latest Twitter-storm from somebody,” he said. “Don’t walk yourself into some bizarre personality contest.” Ryan and Trump’s tenuous relationship has become even more fraught in recent days after a 2005 video leaked last Friday of Trump saying extremely lewd things about women. Ryan nearly withdrew his endorsement of Trump, TIME reported in its [cover story this week](http://time.com/4529433/inside-donald-trump-total-meltdown/?xid=homepage&pcd=hp-magmod), and he told House members on a conference call they were free to cut themselves loose from the nominee. Trump [retaliated on Twitter](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/785828772423561216), calling Ryan “weak and ineffective.” At the Madison event, Ryan told the assembled students about the history of liberal progressivism and why he favors conservative values instead. He promoted a blueprint from House Republicans on policy issues. And he acknowledged that college Republicans might be having a rough time lately. Later, he said he doesn’t blame voters who don’t want to cast a ballot for either Trump or Hillary Clinton. “I know some people are still making their choice,” he said. “I know some people are avoiding making any choice at all. And I don’t begrudge anybody for that. It is certainly easy at a time like this to get bogged down.” He also made clear that his priority is defending the Republican majorities in Congress, twice emphasizing the dangers of Clinton being “given control of Washington” and “given control of Congress.” ## Transcript Look, let me just start off by saying there is a bit of an elephant in the room. [ APPLAUSE ] And it is a troubling situation. I'm serious, it is. I put out a statement about this last night. I meant what I said, and it's still how I feel. But that is not what we are here to talk about today. [ MUSIC ] How about it, ha? Man. Good day. Good to see you. What a beautiful day, ha? 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