Former Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) was reportedly caught off guard by Trump’s win against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016. But, realizing that he was going to need to work with Trump, he started researching how to interact with someone “amoral and transactional.” He also did extensive research on how to deal with people with “narcissistic personality disorder,” according to a new book by journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa.
Business Insider obtained a copy of their book, “Peril,” and reported that Ryan also told by a wealthy doctor, a Republican donor, that he needed “to understand what narcissistic personality disorder is.” The doctor explained his “thoughts on how to best deal with a person with anti-social personality disorder” in an email, with links to articles and information about the disorder, according to the book.
“Ryan studied them for weeks, convinced Trump had the personality disorder,” Woodward and Costa write.
Trump and Ryan butted heads after Trump publicly defended the white supremacists who organized the deadly riot in Charlottesville, Va., in 2017.
“White supremacy is repulsive,” Ryan tweeted at the time. “This bigotry is counter to all this country stands for. There can be no moral ambiguity.”
Woodward and Costa write that Trump later called Ryan, enraged over the statement. Trump reportedly yelled, “You’re not in the foxhole with me!”
“Are you finished?” Ryan shouted back, according to their book. “May I have some time to speak now? You’re the president of the United States. You have a moral leadership obligation to get this right and not declare there is a moral equivalency here.”
Trump and Ryan continued to butt heads throughout Ryan’s tenure as Speaker.
“Peril,” set to be released on Sept. 21, will detail the Ryan and Trump’s relationship, as well as the overall transition from Trump to President Biden.
Read more at Business Insider.
