The Hill:
In interviews The Hill conducted with more than two dozen House Republicans from across the ideological spectrum over the last couple of weeks, many of Ryan’s colleagues said they are doubtful he will run for president in 2016. Most believe that concerns for his young family will lead him to lay claim to the job he’s always wanted: chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Indeed:
Ryan on Tuesday told the Wall Street Journal that he plans to lead the Ways and Means Committee in the next Congress.
If Ryan is out, that actually might be good news for Chris Christie, whose path to the nomination would probably need to be like Mitt Romney's: Divide the field for as long as possible and win a war of attrition.
Take Iowa, for example: Christie may be the least popular Republican in the state, but without a candidate like Paul Ryan who can unify hardline conservatives and "establishment" Republicans, Christie is still popular enough to win a quarter of the caucus vote, which could even be enough to win a heavily divided caucus—or at least finish near the top.
Then again, if something comes out of the subpoenas over the Fort Lee lane closures during Christie's reelection campaign, then it won't matter to him what Paul Ryan does, because he'll be done either way.