Good Thursday morning, I'm Jake Sherman and welcome to your Political Playbook Audio Briefing, sponsored by Chevron.

And I'm Anna Palmer. The follow-up from Speaker Paul Ryan's bombshell announcement that he's leaving Congress is just starting to sink in.

Let's break it down a bit. The next eight months are going to be particularly brutal. Think about it. Outside of the chaos inside the

White House, you now are going to have a different flavor of chaos on Capitol Hill. Will Paul

Ryan remain speaker through the election? Will Kevin McCarthy or Steve Scalise make a move? Will

Republicans keep control of the House? And if they don't, will Nancy Pelosi become

Speaker? Will anyone challenge her? Will she win a floor vote in a tight Democratic majority?

Will the president shut down the government in September over lingering policy issues?

Well, at least the Nats are winning, and though it doesn't look like the wizards are going to throw another season down the toilet. Wait a second. Here's where things stand.

Rachel Bade and John Bresnahan have the story on how some Republicans want Ryan out as Speaker

sooner rather than later. A quick election benefits McCarthy. He's already the majority leader and a

natural heir to the top slot. Despite that,

Speaker Paul Ryan seems hell-bent on staying speaker through the election. But obviously,

that could be quite difficult. The speaker race will permeate every meeting, every legislative

strategy, and the election. For example, last night, Ryan Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,

Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, and House

Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy were supposed to go to the White House for dinner with President

Trump. In the middle of the day, after Ryan's announcement, the White House invited House

majority whip Steve Scalise, another candidate for the top GOP slot. Make no mistake. If you're

thinking about running for leadership or your bosses,

this is the time to make moves. Don't pretend like you're not. Have your allies back you up.

Here's what's happening behind the scene so far. Both McCarthy and Scalise are plotting,

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