House Speaker Paul Ryan is trying to defend his decision to have a personal border wall to protect his home, while refusing to build a border wall to protect America.
Ryan says that the reason he needs a personal border wall is because he has three children.
“Having a backyard fence for three dogs and three kids is not a half-bad idea,” Ryan said during his Monday interview with Wisconsin’s NBC15.
Although Ryan made clear that his children are entitled to play, live and grow up in an environment that’s shielded from external threats, he did not seem sold on the idea that the rest of America’s children should be afforded such protections. When asked if he intended to make “building a wall part of the GOP agenda,” Ryan would not answer.
Nor did Ryan answer affirmatively when asked specifically if, as House Speaker, he would allow legislation “on to the floor of the House to build a wall along the border with Mexico.”
Instead, Ryan seemed to indicate that he could perhaps use his position of power to oppose President Trump’s planned wall — noting that he doesn’t necessarily agree with Trump on “how” to secure the border.
We agree with goal of securing the border. How specifically we secure that border, we will figure that out. In some cases, walls are necessary– what the border patrol experts tell us– and in other cases, they think other things are necessary: high technology, fences and the rest. The point is we agree on the goal of securing the border, no two ways about it. Every Republican agrees with that. The question is, when we get to legislating, we will figure out exactly how to do that.
Ryan insists “every Republican” supports securing the border. In doing so, Ryan is essentially arguing that even Republicans who have authored legislation that would effectively dissolve the U.S. border — such as John McCain, Marco Rubio, Jeff Flake, and Lindsey Graham — are as equally committed to border security as Ryan is.
Ryan’s effort to defend his personal border wall came during an interview with NBC15’s John Stofflet.
Following the release of a new poll showing Ryan has tanked to well below 50 percent in his primary race, Ryan announced that he would appear on local Wisconsin media.
During the interview, Ryan was about his primary race on August 9 against Wisconsin businessman Paul Nehlen.