Later this afternoon, Speaker Paul Ryan is expected to forcefully disclaim any interest in the Republican presidential nomination. This seems like a wise move on his part. If he sought the nomination or sort-of sought it, he would be very unlikely to get it; if he got the nomination, it would probably have become much less valuable in the process; and the speculation that he is surreptitiously seeking the presidency seems to me to be damaging his reputation with Republicans nationally. The best thing for him to do, then, is put as definitive an end to that speculation as possible.