Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is retiring from Congress. There are bets being taken already that this presages a defeat for Republicans in the next election. If so, the Party is in crisis due in no small part to the President. Ryan is putting a positive spin on the future, but it seems hollow. As for his reasons for leaving, he says he wants to spend more time with his family and stop being a “weekend Dad.” That might be true but it is one of the oft-used excuses in the book. Republicans have little time to find viable candidates and gear up for looming elections. They are in a bind and they know it. Democrats are gleeful, but they too have work to do. It will be a publicity battle from now to November.