Replies

I definitely like Ryan better than Rubio, McDonnell, Pawlenty...and Portman, whoever he is. Christie is the best possible Republican to be New Jersey governor, but it’s very unclear how on-message he would be on the national stage.

I’ve seen Ryan on TV give compelling, intelligent, reasonable and persuasive arguments for conservative positions. That’s more than I can say for most of the picks Romney’s been considering. Ryan seems like a true believer and not a political hack or career politician. He’s not a fire-breathing attack dog, but he doesn’t seem too shy about sticking the knife in Obama on matters of substance.

Another problem with Ryan is that Romney is doubling down on fiscal/economic issues. He’s not balancing himself out with someone who has national security or social conservative credibility. My preferred dark horse was Jon Kyl, to lend elder statesman credibility and what I believe are strong conservative credentials. Another drawback to Ryan is that he appears quite young, even younger than he is. So that could give the impression to some people that he’s inexperienced. Not that that hurt Obama.

Another problem could be having two guys who like to play the “nice guy” card on the ticket. That may not be the most effective way to deal with the Democrats’ venom. We already see Romney falling into the trap of trying to act “nice” towards Obama or rise above the fray. But when someone viciously attacks you with lies, and you just smile and say they’re being silly, it doesn’t make you seem authentic. Normal people know they would be angry and want to strike back if someone spread lies and rumors about them. So they question your credibility if you don’t have a similar reaction when you’re claiming the same thing is happening to you.