Paul Ryan just picked this fight with Donald Trump that he will live to regret

Former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is itching to get rid of Donald Trump.

Ryan believes his moment is now.

But Paul Ryan just picked this fight with Donald Trump that he will live to regret.

Former Speaker Ryan delivered the first in a series of speeches about the future of the conservative movement at the Reagan Library.

Former Vice President Mike Pence, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley also delivered remarks.

In his speech, Ryan came right out swinging at Donald Trump, claiming that the GOP must move past Donald Trump and ditch his America First agenda.

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

According to Ryan, if the GOP wants to win elections it needs to shift back to the “honorable loser” personality and platform of John McCain and Mitt Romney.

“We win majorities by directing our loyalty and respect to voters, and by staying faithful to the conservative principles that unite us,” Ryan said. “This was true even when the person leading our movement was as impressive, polished, and agreeable as they come.”

Ryan also argued that the GOP needs to abandon fights over culture and cede that battle field to the Left.

“We conservatives have to be careful not to get caught up in every little cultural battle,” Ryan told attendees. “Sometimes these skirmishes are just creations of outrage peddlers, detached from reality and not worth anybody’s time.”

“Culture matters, yes, but our party must be defined by more than a tussle over the latest grievance or perceived slight,” Ryan added.

Republicans like Ryan never want to fight cultural battles that will put them on the opposite side of the Fortune 500 CEOs or media executives they want to curry favor with.

Ryan’s defeatist posture is a throwback to the 2012 campaign where the Romney-Ryan ticket largely refused to criticize Barack Obama and let Obama and Joe Biden steamroll them with lies, smears, and unfair attacks.

But polls show Donald Trump is still overwhelmingly popular with Republican voters.

The Never-Trumpers like Paul Ryan only represent a tiny minority of the party.

If the fight is between Donald Trump and Never-Trumpers, then Donald Trump will win every single time.