The billionaire tycoon ended the rift between two of the party's most powerful members as he launched insults at rival Hillary Clinton, describing her as "unhinged" and a "monster". 

On Tuesday, Mr Trump shocked party members by saying he was not ready to endorse Mr Ryan in his campaign for re-election in November.

Mr Ryan, who is the party's highest-ranking elected official, had himself long delayed endorsing Mr Trump.

But Mr Trump finally made the announcement during a Friday night campaign stop in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

He said: "I support and endorse our Speaker of the House Paul Ryan."

And he added that while they "may disagree on a couple of things" they agree on a lot as well.

U-turn

In an interview earlier this week, Mr Trump said he was "not quite there yet" when it came to endorsing Mr Ryan in his primary race.

He also praised Mr Ryan's opponent, Paul Nehlen, for running "a very good campaign".

Mr Nehlen said Mr Trump's decision "is appropriate and is a display of true leadership".

Mr Trump also took the opportunity to unleash some new insults against Mrs Clinton.

He told his supporters: "In one way, she's a monster."

He added: "In another way she's a weak person. She's actually not strong enough to be president."

Mr Trump called Mrs Clinton "totally unhinged" and "unbalanced" and said she lacks the integrity to serve in the White House.

The comments come after senior Republicans begged Mr Trump to attack Mrs Clinton instead of members of his own party.