Making good on a vow to do so, House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) has spoken with two of the four remaining Republican presidential candidates.
The outreach allowed Ryan "to explain House Republicans' plan to present a bold conservative policy agenda this year," Strong said in an email. "He will have similar calls with Senator [Marco] Rubio and Governor [John] Kasich soon."
A spokeswoman for Cruz didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. But Trump spokeswoman Hope Hicks said in an email that "They did speak, and they had a great conversation. Mr. Trump likes and respects the Speaker very much."
Those warm words would signal a detente between Ryan and Trump just a week after they made veiled threats toward each other.
Ryan sternly rebuked Trump last week calling his then-equivocation about receiving support from white supremacists a "fundamental" break from conservative orthodoxy. Trump has since told reporters that he doesn't want the support of white supremacists or former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.
Responding to Ryan's comments, Trump warned the speaker last Tuesday that if he wins the presidency, "I'm going to get along great with Congress. Paul Ryan, I don't know him well, but I'm sure I'm going to get along great with him. And if I don't, he's going to have to pay a big price."
The fact that Ryan's outreach began with Trump and Cruz is notable, given that both are backed by more conservative voters who are yearning for an "outsider" to become the party standard bearer. Cruz has close ties to many tea party-aligned House Republican lawmakers and has worked with them in the past to thwart legislation backed by top GOP congressional leaders.