Friday, August 5, 2016 8:28 PM EDT
Moving to heal a deepening rift within the Republican Party, Donald J. Trump belatedly endorsed the primary campaign of Speaker Paul D. Ryan here on Friday, giving his backing to the re-election effort of the nation’s most powerful elected Republican.
Mr. Trump ignited a controversy on Tuesday when he said he was not “quite there yet” in supporting Mr. Ryan, echoing a similar line of doubt that Mr. Ryan had cast before eventually endorsing Mr. Trump for president. The remarks threatened to further splinter Mr. Trump’s relationship with the party and infuriated many officials, including Reince Priebus, the chairman of the Republican National Committee. Mr. Trump’s running mate, Gov. Mike Pence of Indiana, publicly, but peacefully, disagreed with him and backed Mr. Ryan.