Newt Gingrich said Thursday that there is a small man inside of Donald Trump who lashes out at his Republican allies and is “frankly pathetic.”

“Donald Trump has one opponent. Her name is Hillary Clinton. Her name is not Paul Ryan. It’s not anybody else,” Mr. Gingrich, a longtime surrogate for Mr. Trump, said on Fox Business.

Speaking at a rally Wednesday in Florida, Mr. Trump blasted House Speaker Paul Ryan for not congratulating him after Sunday night’s presidential debate against Hillary Clinton.

“Look, first of all, let me just say about Trump, who I admire and I’ve tried to help as much as I can,” Mr. Gingrich said. “There’s a big Trump and a little Trump. The little Trump is frankly pathetic. I mean, he’s mad over not getting a phone call?”

Mr. Ryan made his decision to distance himself, yet not officially withdraw his endorsement, from Mr. Trump after The Washington Post published a 2005 leaked recording of the business mogul having a private conversation with then-host of “Access Hollywood” Billy Bush about using his fame to get away with groping women. Mr. Trump received a wave of backlash by Democrats and Republicans alike for his comments in the recording, which he apologized for and dismissed as “locker room talk.”

Mr. Trump on Tuesday railed against Mr. Ryan and “disloyal” Republicans in a tweetstorm, saying it was a blessing to finally have the “shackles” of the Republican Party removed so he could “fight for America the way I want to.”

Mr. Gingrich responded to the comments during an interview Wednesday, saying it would be best if Mr. Trump stepped away from his Twitter account, The Hill reported.

“I think he ought to quit tweeting by himself, period,” the former speaker said. “I don’t think you want a president of the United States who randomly tweets.”

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