Paul Ryan

WASHINGTON — House Speaker Paul Ryan’s national stature is such that he had to call a news conference to deny he wants to be president. Back on Capitol Hill, he’s about to blow through a statutory deadline to pass an annual budget, a major embarrassment for him and House Republicans.

The House is supposed to produce a budget by Friday. But a tea party revolt over Ryan’s embrace of last year’s bipartisan deal with President Barack Obama to increase spending has left him well short of the votes he needs.

House Republicans met the budget deadline each of the five years they controlled the House under the leadership of John Boehner, who was ousted as speaker last fall under conservative pressure.

Ryan has repeatedly lambasted Democrats when they didn’t get budgets done while in congressional control, even backing a law that would have cut off the paychecks of lawmakers if they failed to pass a budget.

Ryan’s own inability to deliver now that he’s speaker raises questions about his stewardship of the House, and whether his repeated promises to return power to rank-and-file lawmakers can produce results.

“There was a lot of excitement last fall when newly elected Speaker Ryan was talking about 2016 being a year of policy and passing a robust policy agenda,” said Dan Holler, spokesman at Heritage Action for America. “It’s been pretty underwhelming.”

The budget is not the only area where House Republicans are faltering under Ryan’s leadership. Very little significant legislation has been moving, and negotiations over a bill to address Puerto Rico’s fiscal crisis have proceeded in fits and starts, an area where Boehner’s ability to cut deals with Democrats might have come in handy.