By Susan Cornwell
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House Speaker Paul Ryan said on Tuesday that the Republican presidential nominee must reject any group "built on bigotry," an admonishment aimed at Donald Trump after the front-runner failed to disavow a white supremacist group in an interview.
"If a person wants to be the nominee of the Republican Party, there must be no evasion and no games. They must reject any group or cause that is built on bigotry," Ryan told reporters after a meeting of Republicans in the House of Representatives.
"This party does not prey on peoples' prejudices. We appeal to their highest ideals," Ryan said.
Until now, the Wisconsin congressman, a former vice presidential candidate who will chair the Republicans' national convention in July, has tried to stay out of the 2016 presidential race. He reiterated on Tuesday that he would support whoever becomes the Republican nominee.
But the speaker was clearly unhappy with an interview that Trump gave to CNN on Sunday in which the candidate did not clearly condemn white supremacist support. Trump later said he had not heard the questions well because of a bad earpiece.
Ryan's comments came as many in the Republican Party struggle to come to terms with the growing possibility that Trump will be their nominee, with some Republicans repudiating him while others offer him their support.
Calling Republicans the "party of Lincoln," Ryan said: "We believe all people are created equal in the eyes of God and our government. This is fundamental and if someone wants to be our nominee, they must understand this."
Ryan spoke on Super Tuesday, the biggest voting day in the race to pick the 2016 presidential nominees for the November election. A number of Southern states, including Virginia, are among those holding contests, and opinion polls show Trump is likely to consolidate his status as the favorite to win the nomination.
In recent days other lawmakers on Capitol Hill have also become more outspoken about their attitudes toward Trump.
On Sunday evening, Senator Ben Sasse, a conservative Republican from Nebraska, announced on Facebook (O:FB) that he could not support Trump because Trump's "relentless focus is on dividing Americans and on tearing down rather than building back up this glorious nation."
"If Donald Trump ends up as the GOP nominee, conservatives will need to find a third option," Sasse wrote.
Until last week, not a single member of Congress had endorsed Trump, with many Republicans preferring either Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, Senator Marco Rubio of Florida or - before he dropped out - former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.
But that changed last Wednesday when Representative Chris Collins of New York announced he was backing Trump, saying the billionaire businessman had the "guts and fortitude" to run the country.
A handful of other lawmakers have joined in. Trump picked up his first endorsement from a senator on Sunday when Jeff Sessions appeared on a stage with him in the lawmaker's home state of Alabama.