(Photo courtesy Facebook/Adam Kinzinger)
By Eric Stock
WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Channahon, is among the House Republicans who would like to see Wisconsin congressman and former vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan run for U.S. House Speaker.
PODCAST: Listen to Scott’s interview with Kinzinger on WJBC.
“I don’t know why he’s actually do the job expect that he realizes he’s probably the only guy who can unite us right now,” Kinzinger said. “We have to have someone who can be out there for the whole country, for the whose House.”
Kinzinger told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin the effort to get Ryan in as House Speaker is being derailed by the so-called Freedom Caucus, a group of conservative Republicans which was instrumental in getting John Boehner to resign and is backing Florida congressman Daniel Webster.
“Unfortunately, there’s about 30 people in the Republican Party that call themselves the Freedom Caucus that have decided in many cases their decisions are more important than the 200 or to other members of Congress,” Kinzinger said. “It’s going to be an interesting play, that’s for sure.”
Some conservative critics have suggested Ryan is too moderate to which Kinzinger said “If Paul Ryan isn’t conservative enough, I don’t know (who) is.”
Syria
Kinzinger said Russian President Vladimir Putin can’t be trusted. Kinzinger said the United States can’t let Russia take over the Middle East as it launches airstrikes in Syria, not against ISIS as Moscow has claimed, but against the rebels.
“I think we have to stand up against him, it doesn’t mean warfare,” Kinzinger said. “It means understand American actions and Russian actions have consequences.”
The U.S. has sent ammunition to rebels who are trying to take down President Bashar al-Assad in what is looking like a proxy war between the U.S. and Russia.
Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].
