Paul Ryan to Give Speech on 'State of American Politics'

House Speaker Paul Ryan has scheduled an address Wednesday on the "state of American politics," The Hill reports. 

"The speaker will talk about how, in a confident America, we can elevate political debates to inspire and unite people," a Ryan aide said.

The speech will take place in the House Ways and Means Committee room and will be open only to the press and House interns. Ryan's office did not say if it was related to the presidential race, but the speaker has twice called out GOP front-runner Donald Trump over his proposed moratorium on Muslim immigrants and failure to, in Ryan's view, forcefully enough denounce the support of white supremacists.

The announcement of the speech sparked speculation Ryan would be announcing his own bid for the presidency. He has repeatedly said he would not accept the nomination if came up at a contested convention.

Ryan's chief communications adviser Brendan Buck shot down any such speculation on Twitter.

I’m slightly offended that you think I’d be okay with a committee hearing room venue if he was announcing (he’s not).

— Brendan Buck (@BrendanBuck) March 22, 2016

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