Article snippet: House Speaker Paul Ryan has fashioned himself around many identities throughout what’s already been a long career in Washington. He’s been a policy warrior, a GOP presidential nominee, and – finally and perhaps fatefully – the man who would shepherd the Trump agenda into law. He didn’t want to be Tom Foley. Foley was House Speaker in 1994 when a Republican wave ended four decades of Democratic control of the House of Representatives. Foley, D-Wash., lost his reelection race that year in a shocking upset, and Democrats wouldn’t regain the House majority for a dozen years. By announcing his retirement from Congress now, Ryan, R-Wis., is getting out ahead of the gathering political storm. Though few thought he was in serious danger of losing in November, the same cannot be said for the House majority he leads. “It is a big indicator that the speaker doesn’t think he’d be speaker anymore,” former Gov. the Democrats for the House in the fall.” Ryan brushed aside such concerns, saying at his news conference Wednesday that Republicans will be “just fine” if they continue to do their jobs, in tandem with President Donald Trump. But Ryan’s retirement is already being read as a signal to donors and even many of his own colleagues that he believes Republicans are likely to lose control of the House this year. Insiders in both parties expect more GOP retirements, and money that might have flowed to save the jobs of endangered incumbents is almost certain to... Link to the full article to read more