EXCLUSIVE: Paul Ryan to Attend Secret Donor Meeting Next Week in Manhattan

[Purveyor]

Despite denials, Speaker plays footsie with GOP money men

By Ken Kurson • 04/11/16 1:45pm

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) has spent a lot of time denying any interest in the presidency.

Last week, when his office put out a 43-second video, the Drudge Report tweeted an all-caps siren reading “Paul Ryan launches first campaign ad?” Despite the video so resembling a campaign ad that even NPR’s Steve Inskeep joked this morning that he got choked up by the swelling music, Mr. Ryan’s people have aggressively swatted down speculation that the Congressman and unsuccessful 2012 vice presidential candidate was indeed waiting in the wings to be drafted should a consensus not be reached on any of the candidates who have been working to earn the votes of Republican primary voters over the last year.

Mr. Ryan’s press secretary AshLee Strong tweeted back at Drudge simply “no” while his communications director Mike Ricci wrote “Nope, but thanks for the clicks!” Mr. Ryan himself has sought to float above the grubby business of presidential primary politics, telling those speculating that he was fanning the flames of a “Draft Ryan” movement to “knock it off,” even as serious observers of the political scene wonder about his actions. Those wondering include today’s New York Times, which suggests that by, for example, recently meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel, Mr. Ryan is “waging a parallel campaign.”

It appears that Mr. Ryan’s denials and those of his staff aren’t quite as absolute as they’d like voters to believe.

The Observer can now report that Todd Ricketts, the co-owner of the Chicago Cubs who is also the son of the founder of Ameritrade, is arranging a meeting of some of the GOP’s top financial bundlers, to be attended by Mr. Ryan. The meeting is to take place next week at the Mandarin Hotel and will be comprised of a discussion with “twenty or so” Republican donors, including Mr. Ricketts and several people he has raised money with before, such as Randy Kendrick, the wife of Arizona Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick.

The Ricketts Family and Ms. Kendrick have collaborated on political efforts already this campaign. He is the CEO of the Ending Spending Super PAC, which she has supported. She donated and raised money for the Our Principles super PAC, which was founded by Mr. Ricketts’ mother, Marlene Ricketts, who seeded the organization with $3 million. Our Principles was formed earlier this year as an eleventh hour effort to stop Donald Trump from winning the Republican nomination.

more...

http://observer.com/2016/04/exclusive-paul-ryan-to-attend-secret-donor-meeting-next-week-in-manhattan/

[valerief]

1. Ever since he accepted the speaker gig, it was designed he'd be served up at a brokered

convention. Served up without a single primary bruise.

[1StrongBlackMan]

2. I suspect you are correct ...

Last edited Tue Apr 12, 2016, 05:38 PM - Edit history (1)

but I hope for the gop's sake, the donors can come up with enough cash to assuage trump's ego (well, not really) ... if not, there will be 3 people running in the General Election. And I suspect, the Democrat in the race will not be the focus of his ire.