Paul Ryan Makes Light Of Republican Infighting, Says John Boehner Makes A Fine Speaker

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) insisted all is well within the Republican party during a CBS interview on Sunday.

When Charlie Rose suggested the party is divided, Ryan said his colleagues are all "within a big tent," committed to the same principles.

"We are not having disagreements with each other on principles or even policies. The disagreements that have occurred have been really over tactics," Ryan said. "And so I think we should all put it in perspective. I call it the Battle of Ideas, it's creative tension. And I don't think there's really this vast civil war in the Republican Party that like many in the left suggest there is. I think we're a party with a vibrant debate, adding ideas, solving problems, and I think that's going to be -- I think we're going to be okay."

Rose asked the representative, who is regarded as a potential candidate for the Republican nomination for president, whether he had 2016 aspirations.

Ryan said he'd "worry about those things" after addressing his responsibilities in the House majority, and seeing his party through the 2014 elections.

"Would you rather be speaker of the House?" Rose asked.

"No, I've already kind of ruled that one out. I think there are other places that I'd rather be than that," Ryan said. "John Boehner is doing a fine job. I -- look, I know he's controversial but he's doing a very, very good job."

Ryan addressed tensions within the Republican party during his address at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Thursday. He said a majority party "doesn't burn heretics, it wins converts."

"You fight it out, you figure out what works, you come together, and you win," Ryan said. "It's messy, it's noisy, and it's a little bit uncomfortable, but the center of gravity is shifting."