So....We like Paul Ryan?

self | august 11, 2012 | beebuster2000

[beebuster2000]

So what about freepers? we like paul ryan? i like what he says, i just wonder if all Romney has done is given a bigger target to he whose name may not be spoken.

[ilovesarah2012]

If you’re interested in his voting record -

http://www.ontheissues.org/House/Paul_Ryan.htm

I can live with him, though I was praying it would be West.

[laweeks]

Absolutely

[nathanbedford]

With this pick Mitt Romney has made his intentions clear, he will run this campaign on the economy, and with Paul Ryan on the ticket that means control of deficits and debt, a commitment to the electorate to restrain spending and which in turn explicitly includes reform of entitlements. Ryan since the 2010 election has been publicly declaring that it should be the strategy of the Republican Party to work with Obama where possible but, anticipating that would not be possible, to offer the electorate a clear choice. That is why he presented his competing budgets, to make explicit the choice.

In other words this choice should reassure many conservatives that it will be the strategy of the campaign to depart from the passive aggressive approach of the John Boehner House of Representatives and embark on an explicit attack on the Obama economy. I hope the attack also includes a indictment of Obama as a rank socialist, a radical Alinsky redistributionist whose definition of "transformation" ultimately means the death of capitalism and democracy. I fear this is unlikely for these reasons which follow. I also hope that this attack includes a clear warning to the people of the existential threat facing the nation recently described by Marc Steyn as a "death spiral."

Many of us question why Romney has been relatively passive in his campaign against Obama when he was ruthlessly aggressive in his attacks which brought down competing Republicans in the primaries. I think his advisors tell him that he is pursuing two different electorates in the primaries as opposed to the general. In the primaries one is dealing with a committed base who want red meat and in the general one seeks to enlist the independents and undecideds who supposedly resist negative campaigns. I think this is much overblown. History reveals that truly vicious negative attacks such as those waged by Lyndon Johnson against Barry Goldwater were extremely effective with independents who became convinced that Goldwater would blow up the world. I believe that successful negative campaigns do not experience blowback when the candidate who wages it is likable. I think that both Ryan and Romney have the kinds of personas that will shield them from such criticism if they choose to attack, but that, of course, will be Ryan's job for which I think he is well-suited if he is temperamentally fit.

Ryan will not be flummoxed in the debate and he is very unlikely to make any serious gaffes on the stump so, from a practical political point of view, he fulfills the first criteria for a vice presidential pick, he will likely do no harm. Of course, that consideration follows only after the pick can be confidently presented as the man who can succeed to the presidency in the event of tragedy. Ryan fills those requirements splendidly.

His selection focuses the nation on the state of the economy. That is the terrain on which Romney has elected to run, probably at the expense to some minor extent of litigating the social issues. I am a social conservative in many respects as well as a fiscal conservatives but I am not concerned in this cycle about the ticket concentrating on spending, taxes, and jobs because I believe that the nation is careening toward a fiscal cliff from which there could be no recovery which would satisfy a conservative. This is a question of saving democracy and capitalism not advancing social issues which will die with the Republic-apart always from abortion which remains a dealbreaker for me.

I am concerned that the candidates will look like two nerds in a pod. Balancing that is the knowledge that Ryan is extremely likable, extremely telegenic, and therefore able to carry a negative message against Obama without appearing mean-spirited. Both of these guys are tall, physically attractive, physically fit and not the caricature by any means of nerds.

No candidate, of course, comes without negatives and Ryan's budget plan does open the door to demagoguery from the left but that is only the kind of demagoguery we get with Ryan rather than the kind of demagoguery we would get with another pick. In other words, we know how our enemy operates and if we are going to be compelled to wage a campaign against demagoguery let us at least do it when the subject matter is the budget.

My other choice for the slot was Marco Rubio and either man would have the advantage of being the right age in 2020 to make a credible candidate. I believe we are going to win the election this cycle and, if Romney can perform credibly, the next. But I am extremely concerned about the downstream effect of the demographic wave that is engulfing the nation with immigrants who simply do not share the culture, language, or understanding of the rule of law, of capitalism, of democracy all of which are part of our national fabric. Those who are not immigrants are being "transformed" at a frightening pace into welfare and entitlement dependents who will be likely to vote their purses.

[kempster]

I like Paul Ryan. Since the polls are showing that jobs and the deficit are top concerns of Americans, this seems like a pick that will bring a light to this that Romney himself may not have been able to accomplish.

[spacejunkie2001]

out of all the contenders being bandied about, Ryan was my #1 choice.

[muawiyah]

WE probably don't particularly care one way or the other. Ryan's assignment took him into the tax milieu so we might suppose folks who like the tax stuff he came up with might like him. Others might not.

What's his position on Right To LIfe and is he willing to suppress his urges regarding RTL while he runs with a godless, soulless baby killer?

Still can't get my vote ~ not even if he had Jesus running with him.

[humblegunner]

This isn’t news and you have capitalization problems.

[saganite]

Hell yes, we like Paul Ryan.

[Bender2]

We interrupt this thread with BREAKING NEWS... Ken Brockman reporting--

Paul Ryan has been named Mitt Romney's VP running mate... and we now take you to the Senate Rotunda for remarks by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid--

Well, I now can report that an anonymous caller told me... that Paul Ryan beats his wife with a fireplace poker--

Also, I was told Paul Ryan... is know for browsing the world wide web for child pornography--

And he secretly runs... a covert dog fighting ring in a barn outside Jamesville, Wisconsin--

I get no joy from this information and report it... simply as my duty to be a good American!

We now take you to Joe Soptic... for his comments on Senator Reid's facts--

Wow, Senator Reid, I am so awed by your truth, I find I must also report that when Mitt Romney was killing my wife... Paul Ryan was his lookout and getaway driver--

And we also have remarks by Stephanie Cutter... on the Ryan selection--

Paul Ryan was the dirty dog... that photoshopped me into that photo... with President Obama!

And he doctored that conference call with Joe Soptic... editing my voice in to it when I have never met nor talked to Joe Soptic at any time in my whole life!

President Obama has also spoke out about Paul Ryan... saying he welcomes the Congressman to the race--

Paul Ryan brings a wealth of talent to this election... Talent, I say, in championing legislation that will give billionaires untold trillions of dollars in tax cuts, destroy Medicare and Medicare, starve the poor and elderly in doing away with Food Stamps, remove from the voter rolls all Blacks, Hispanics and Gays. And finally, Ryan will ramp up the continuing total war the GOP has on women and their reproductive rights. It is "Romnyhood & Ryan, Rape and Pillage" for the Radical Right-Wing GOP!

Now, we must stop all these negative attack ads... on me and get back to trashing the evil Romney and his spawn from hell, Paul Ryan!

There you have all the BREAKING NEWS this objective journalist can report. We now return you to this thread already playing... This has been Ken Brockman reporting.

[keckkw]

I think Ryan will be great. Anybody the GOP puts up is gonna get “ the treatment” from the media. Ryan has been great at getting under OBama’s skin. It might cause another “ you didn’t build that” moment.

[Perdogg]

I think there are some freepers who wanted Romney to pick a liberal female governor of a blue state, so that they can continue to moan and whine about him. I am also waiting for people to claim that Ryan is a Soros stooge on the CFR who is really a Russian manchurian candidate.

I think it is a good, solid choice.

[4everontheRight]

My fav was West but I was more concerned he would pick pasty Pawwwlenty. Thank God it is Ryan! I am very happy with that choice...I didn’t even mind the 1:54AM news breaking on my cell phone waking me up!!!

[Perdogg]

Do you think that Ryan and people who will vote for the ticket are Satanist?

[Redleg Duke]

You don’t approve of Jesus because he couldn’t swim! Why else would he walk on the water?

[muawiyah]

All, or some? How about yourself ~ do you consider yourself the sort of Satanist we should really be concerned with?

[sneakers]

Yep! I like Ryan!

[eCSMaster]

Watching MSNBC.

Howard Fineman looks like a pig.

[juggernaut]

Great Pick!

GO GET ‘EM!

[arasina]

Very well stated post!

[Londo Molari]

It doesn't seem to matter to some of the suborn folks on this board. Seems like some freepers still insist on giving 1/2 a vote to obama. I just pray they don't live in swing states.

[Wuli]

Yes

some wanted Rubio; I wanted Rubio safe in his Senate seat

a very unwise choice would have been Christie - a media favorite

Condi would have been nothing but pandering to a certain Black vote or women’s vote

many good governors would have been O.K., but just O.K.

Ryan probably has the fed government spending analysis clearer than anyone, clearer than Romney for sure

He’ll be good on the stump

[muawiyah]

Nobody can offset the problem you have with Romney. Sorry ~ you people made a big mistake and he’s still a loser.

[Le Chien Rouge]

I was going to vote third Party.But,Like 2009 with McCain picking Palin, I am voting mostly for the VP selection.

Sorry, not a fan of Romney but I love Ryan.

[cotton1706]

I really like Ryan. He’s a solid pick for Vice-President and I look forward to seeing him as head of the Senate.

We’ve heard a lot lately about a return the the 1950’s. Historically, I see a lot of similarity to the Eisenhower-Nixon ticket of 1952. The image of an above it all leader, no doubt a republican but more middle of the road than leaning right, and a very young member of congress who’s very articulate and well-versed on current issues and representative of the more ideological wing of the party.

I’m feeling good about the ticket. I would have been depressed with a Portman or Pawlenty and nervous about a Rubio. I feel energized. With this ticket, we may be able to sweep the democrats out of power as Ike and Dick did sixty years ago.

[beebuster2000]

wow, that was a pretty good post !!

ryan is a bet on the intelligence of the electorate and the ability to grasp how deep we are in trouble. i hope it proves out, rather than finding out that the electorate is either clueless or just want the debt fueled gravy train to keep rolling till it can’t.

[abercrombie_guy_38]

So you’ll be, in effect, voting for Obama?

[TexasCajun]

But will it be enough for Jim and others to support the ticket and help defeat Obama?

[muawiyah]

Why all this concern with swing states so late in the cycle? You should have been thinking about that back in February when you decided to screw with Virginia's primary.

As it is the GOP-e made an irremediable error for which they and their running dog lackeys will continue to pay for decades!

[Kansas58]

When Judgment Day comes, for me, I do not want God to tell me that I was ungrateful or prideful.

Romney can be persuaded on the Social Issues.

That Ryan is ProLife says quite a bit, as there are other economic conservatives Romney could have picked, but passed up for this honor.

Romney is not with us 100%, to be sure, but Romney understands numbers and elections and Romney can be persuaded to become even more conservative on all of the issues.

Obama can not be persuaded.

Obama will destroy our country, born and unborn alike will suffer under 4 more years of the tyrant, Obama.

[Walrus]

Are you kidding???

Disciple of Ayn Rand, fiscal conservative, smart, articulate, unafraid ...WHAT’S NOT TO LIKE????

The first step to truly restoring America was made today.

[mathluv]

I agree with the West idea. Ryan is okay - he is no Sarah.

[X-spurt]

Hard to hit those caps while texting and driving?

Paul Ryan is a very good pick! He will make the focus on the economy and how to correct it making nobama and his gaggle stumble even more trying to hide “their” economic mess.

[FrankR]

Boy, I’m sure glad we have obama to fill in your complacency about the future of the company.../sarc

[Cato in PA]

Mitt certainly could have done worse.

For me, Paul Ryan is in the same territory as Pat Toomey: the least conservative candidate I would consider voting for.

But the election isn’t about trying to attract people like me, of course. They’re going after people who are focused like a laser on the economy, and it’s hard to argue that Ryan adds a -lot- of credibility to the ticket.

[muawiyah]

You and your tiresome nonsense. This is not a zero sum game. You run your boy, the Democrats run their boy. My vote goes somewhere else. You weren't getting it anyway and knew that 5 years ago when this started.

[beebuster2000]

funny. but honestly, capitalization is the least of my problems.

[4rcane]

yep. His policy ideas are in the right direction - the only down side is that its not big enough to fix the problem. We need $1trillion+ cut in spending

[Perdogg]

These people never tell us for whom they are for, always for whom they are against.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

How about his parents ?
Were they born in the USA or just sworn in ?

Can’t be too careful these days... (s)

[Kit cat]

THANK-YOU for your commentary, I always wait to see your words of
wisdom, I am very happy with this pick!!! GAME ON!! We are about to
see how vicious the left can be!!!

[muawiyah]

You'll find that Romney loves the adulation of the leftwingtards. He'll stick to the folks he knows.

If I thought he had a chance of winning i"d suggest you start preparing to impeach him as of January 21, 2013.

[GailA]

Criteria does the head of the ticket meet Bible and Constitutional standards? Answer is NO! VP has no power. True power lies in CONGRESS they write and pass the laws.

[Nervous Tick]

well written

[muawiyah]

You are trading away the future of America for the chance to have Romney bury fiscal responsibility. Once Ryan is INSIDE that’s the last you’ll hear from him.

[popdonnelly]

As someone who wants smaller government, I couldn’t be happier.

[randita]

Both of these guys are tall, physically attractive, physically fit and not the caricature by any means of nerds.

This is a point that is well taken. Romney's well, Romney. Okay, but not Clinton as far as appeal goes.

Paul Ryan has Paul Newman baby blues, a hairline that rivals Judge Napolitano's, and the clean cut image of the guy you'd love to take home to meet Mom and Dad. That means a lot in the age of superficiality.

Two demographics Ryan will appeal to are married women (who would like their husbands to be just like him) and metrosexuals (of either sex). The latter are the young adults who are economically savvy and know what's coming down the pike if something's not done about it soon. I think this group will like and trust Ryan because he's one of them.

[livius]

Romney is awful and I swore to myself I wouldn’t get suckered into voting for VP again. In practice, a VP does absolutely nothing and has no effect on anything once in office.

It would be nice to hear someone articulating conservative ideas, however, and Ryan is very, very good at that. The question in my mind is whether Romney (who is not conservative in any area except perhaps about the tax rate that affects him) will let him do so.

Romney is a poor speaker and has a poor command of facts, so he may not be comfortable with somebody who is just his opposite and, what’s worse, may not defend him or even let him speak in the first place.

However, there is a faint possibility that Ryan will actually shape up Romney a bit. One of the reasons that Romney is so inarticulate and can’t defend himself against attacks is that he really has no program of his own. Maybe Ryan’s job will be to give him one.

I’m going to wait and see. That said, I really wish Ryan were the Presidential candidate and Romney was off somewhere washing his temple garments and consulting Moroni about life on Kolob.

[Fester Chugabrew]

I must reserve my opinion until he proves he can spell the word, “potatoe.” Without this qualification he does not have the required “gravitas.”

[ebshumidors]

A while back I wrote an article for American Thinker titled ‘Romney’s in it to Win it’. Although he seemed to go passive, this pick is a smart move. How he governs, though, is an altogether different thing.