US House Chaplain Rescinds His Resignation

The Washington Post reports:

The Rev. Patrick J. Conroy, the House chaplain who announced his resignation under pressure last month, informed Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) Thursday that he wanted to rescind his offer and remain in his position at least through the end of this year.

In a two-page letter, Conroy informed Ryan that he gave in to pressure from the speaker’s staff when he agreed in mid-April to resign, believing that Ryan had the power to fire him, but the chaplain now believes he was pressured into the resignation for lack of cause.

“I have never been disciplined, nor reprimanded, nor have I ever heard a complaint about my ministry during my time as House chaplain,” Conroy wrote Thursday. In previous statements, Ryan denied that the Jesuit priest’s political views played any role in the ouster and that instead he had heard numerous complaints about Conroy’s lack of interaction with lawmakers.

Multiple outlets have reported that Ryan first warned Conroy after he issued a House prayer that the GOP tax cuts result in “no winner and no losers.”