Donald Trump has launched a blistering Twitter attack on his own party, branding fellow Republicans as disloyal and unable to win, and singling out House Speaker Paul Ryan as 'very weak and ineffective'. The outburst on Tuesday morning came after a week in which dozens of elected Republicans abandoned him following the release of a tape in which he boasted about groping women.
Trump's tirade targeted Ryan, the most senior Republican in Congress, who has been a vocal critic of the nominee and this week said he would no longer defend or campaign with Trump. 'Despite winning the second debate in a landslide (every poll), it is hard to do well when Paul Ryan and others give zero support!' Trump tweeted, before adding that Ryan had 'a bad conference call where his members went wild at his disloyalty'.
The Republican candidate also attacked 2008 nominee John McCain for withdrawing his endorsement, tweeting: 'The very foul mouthed Sen John McCain begged for my support during his primary (I gave, he won), then dropped me over locker room remarks!' McCain, a decorated war hero, had previously been mocked by Trump for being captured during the Vietnam war.
Despite the growing divisions, prominent Republicans Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz both reaffirmed their support for Trump on Tuesday. Rubio said he disagreed with Trump on many things but did not want Hillary Clinton as president, while Cruz described Clinton as 'manifestly unfit to be president'. Trump himself welcomed the freedom to attack dissenters, tweeting: 'It is so nice that the shackles have been taken off me and I can now fight for America the way I want to.'
