Paul Ryan says he will vote for Donald Trump

The speaker of the House of Representatives says he will vote for Donald Trump.

Rep. Paul Ryan made that statement in a column submitted Thursday for publication in The Gazette, his hometown newspaper.

The statement at least partially answers a question on many minds: whether the leader of the House Republicans and chairman of the upcoming Republican National Convention would support Trump's candidacy.

Ryan has criticized Trump during the primary campaign. The two met May 12, but afterward Ryan said it was too soon for an endorsement.

A Ryan campaign spokesman said the column is an endorsement of Trump's candidacy.

Ryan wrote in the opinion piece, which is being released on this website this afternoon, that he and Trump have talked at length.

Ryan's column also touts the “confident America” policy agenda he has been developing since becoming speaker of the House last fall.

“Through these conversations, I feel confident he (Trump) would help us turn the ideas in this agenda into laws to help improve people's lives. That's why I'll be voting for him this fall,” Ryan wrote.

Ryan goes on to say that he and Trump do not agree on everything and that when he sees the need, Ryan will continue to speak his mind.

“But the reality is, on the issues that make up our agenda, we have more common ground than disagreement,” Ryan wrote.

Ryan also mentions the likely Democratic nominee for president, Hilary Clinton, by name, saying she is unlikely to support the GOP agenda.

“A Clinton White House would mean four more years of liberal cronyism and a government more out for itself than the people it serves. Quite simply, she represents all that our agenda aims to fix,” Ryan wrote.

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