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On Tuesday, House Speaker Paul Ryan unveiled Part I of a new Republican agenda to show voters what the party is for 鈥� not just what it鈥檚 against.

In an African-American neighborhood in Washington, he introduced a plan developed by House Republicans to fight poverty, which has been a high priority for Speaker Ryan.

But all that the attending media wanted to know about was his reaction to Donald Trump's latest controversial comments. The presumptive GOP nominee had said that a judge who is handling the Trump University case is biased due to his Mexican heritage. Ryan characterized the comments as 鈥渞acist,鈥� and said they were 鈥渋ndefensible.鈥�

The battery of questions about Mr. Trump 鈥� as opposed to the substance of the speaker鈥檚 plan to help the poor 鈥� illustrates the challenge that Ryan will have in breaking through the noise that surrounds this presidential campaign.

鈥淎merican politics is dominated by presidential discussion,鈥� says Kyle Kondik, political analyst and managing editor of Sabato鈥檚 Crystal Ball. 鈥淯nless Ryan can get Trump to basically echo Ryan鈥檚 talking points, I just think it鈥檚 going to be hard for Ryan鈥檚 message to break through.鈥�

'Something to run on'

One thing that can be said about Trump鈥檚 vision for America 鈥� he鈥檚 got ideas, but there鈥檚 not much flesh on the bones, and many of them don鈥檛 connect with traditional Republican positions.

Ryan鈥檚 anti-poverty plan is a steak in comparison.

The document weighed in at 35 pages (a snapshot is here). The speaker characterizes it as a bottom-up approach to a problem that hasn鈥檛 budged in 50 years. The plan would increase work requirements for welfare recipients, including for food stamps; better reward work so that poor people aren鈥檛 punished for earning more; consolidate federal programs, and give states more say in how aid is distributed.

Democrats lambasted the proposals for gutting the safety net, but Matt Mackowiak, a GOP consultant, says starting with poverty is 鈥渟ymbolically important,鈥� because Republicans 鈥渄on鈥檛 have a great record鈥� in helping the poor. Tuesday's proposal, he says, could provide Republicans 鈥渁 real way to reach out to minority communities with credibility.鈥�

Over the next three weeks Ryan and his House colleagues will unveil the rest of their six-point agenda, titled 鈥淎 Better Way.鈥� Other issues will include national security, the economy, repealing and replacing 鈥淥bamacare,鈥� tax reform, and the Constitution. The agenda is meant to show voters what Republicans in Congress would do if they also had the presidency.

The agenda 鈥渇ills in policy gaps鈥� that are lacking from Trump, says Mr. Mackowiak. 鈥淚t gives members something to run on that is entirely separate from Trump, and it also gives Trump a chance to embrace the mainstream Republican party.鈥�

If this were a normal election year, there would be tight messaging coordination up and down the ticket. That鈥檚 exactly what Ryan had in mind when he announced last year that House Republicans would develop a positive vision for the country. He anticipated that their work would help shape the nominee鈥檚 campaign, and jump-start the legislative process for a new GOP president.

But that was before the speaker from Wisconsin knew that the nominee would be a brash real estate mogul whose statements would require constant repudiation by lawmakers. And before he knew the nominee would reject core Republican principles, such as free trade or entitlement reform. Despite their differences, the pragmatic Ryan last week endorsed Trump, because only a Republican president can help make the House agenda 鈥渁 reality.鈥�

So now the speaker is in a position of trying to bring the nominee on board with his ideas.

鈥淥rdinarily, the top of the ticket defines the party, but Ryan is saying, 鈥榥ot this year.鈥� He鈥檚 saying, 鈥楬ere is what you鈥檒l get from us,鈥� 鈥� says Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. She calls the Ryan agenda 鈥渁 productive move and a clarifying move in a confusing year.鈥�

Ryan agenda 'invites Trump to adopt [it]'

Professor Jamieson also says that in a campaign that is shaping up to be highly negative, Americans are 鈥渉ungering鈥� for a positive message such as that delivered by Ryan.

But will they respond to a set of policy papers from House task forces 鈥� if they even hear about them?

Voters don鈥檛 want 10-point plans on every major issue, cautions Mackowiak, but they do want to know that a candidate feels their anxiety and that life will get better with that candidate. Simplicity and repetition of a few core ideas 鈥� 脿 la Bernie Sanders and even Trump 鈥� are critical, he says, adding that 鈥渋t鈥檚 not even clear鈥� what Hillary Clinton鈥檚 message is. Like Ryan, she鈥檚 also considered a policy wonk.

At his press conference, Ryan said that he and Trump have had 鈥渆xhaustive鈥� discussions about the House GOP agenda, including welfare-to-work. But talking is not the same as agreeing.

Still, says Jamieson, as the Ryan agenda unfurls, 鈥渋t invites Trump to adopt that agenda.鈥� The nominee will be peppered with questions from reporters, asking if he supports the agenda, or if he would sign related legislation if he were president, she says.

If Trump does not embrace the agenda, Ryan can still use it to help Republicans running for Congress, analysts and lawmakers say.

Jamieson can envision Ryan putting up ads about what Republicans stand for 鈥� without mentioning Trump 鈥� and using those ads to help Republicans in tight congressional races who may be endangered by having Trump at the top of the ballot.

She points to Barack Obama, who, in 2008, bought a half hour on network television to basically make the closing argument for his presidential candidacy and what he stood for.

鈥淚t was very powerful move,鈥� she said.