Trump pours scorn on Paul Ryan as ‘a curse’ to the Republican Party after ex-speaker criticized the GOP’s reliance on ‘one personality’

• Paul Ryan and Trump are at odds after the former house speaker criticized the trajectory of the GOP.
• In a statement on Friday, Trump said Ryan had “no clue as to what needs to be done for our country.”
• The comments come after Ryan blasted elected Republicans who continue to support the ex-president.
• See more stories on Insider’s business page.

Former President Donald Trump on Friday called Paul Ryan “a curse to the Republican Party” after the former house speaker criticized the trajectory of the GOP.

In a written statement through his leadership political action committee, Trump called Ryan a “RINO” – Republican in name only – and said that having him “on your side” will “guarantee a loss, for both you, the Party, and America itself!”

“He has no clue as to what needs to be done for our Country, was a weak and ineffective leader, and spends all of his time fighting Republicans as opposed to Democrats who are destroying our Country,” Trump added.

The former president also accused Ryan and Sen. Mitt Romney of costing Republicans the 2012 presidential election (Ryan was the vice-presidential nominee at the time).

Read more: Trump will endorse Ryan Zinke, his former Interior secretary, for the new US House seat in Montana

Trump’s rebuke comes a day after the former house speaker delivered a scathing speech. He warned of the political perils facing the Republican Party if it continues to support the former president.

“2020 left Republicans powerless in Washington,” Ryan said at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California.

Ryan mocked Republican lawmakers who promoted Trump as the leader and said that GOP voters would “not be impressed by the sight of yes-men and flatterers flocking to Mar-a-Lago,” according to Politico.

“If the conservative cause depends on the populist appeal of one personality or on second-rate imitations, then we’re not going anywhere,” Ryan added.

The former house speaker is the latest high-profile conservative to voice his disdain for the former president.

Earlier this year, he condemned the efforts to challenge President Joe Biden’s Electoral College victory and called the objections “anti-democratic,” The Hill reported.