Last Saturday, Mitt Romney announced that Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan would be his Vice-Presidential nominee. While Ryan’s name had been in the mix, he wasn’t necessarily considered to be a frontrunner among the several candidates considered publicly to be on the short list.
Ryan’s selection brings some positives to the Romney campaign. He is young, smart, and a principled fiscal conservative, known for his expertise (and strong feelings) on the federal budget. In my post on July 26, I had talked about a VP nominee who could add gravitas to the Romney campaign (speaking of Rob Portman at the time), and I think Ryan certainly brings that in a big way.
In fact, during one interview with both Romney and Ryan this past week-end, I thought Ryan kind of overshadowed Romney. The interviewer asked Romney various questions, and Romney would give a brief (and somewhat superficial) response, whereupon Ryan would jump in with lots more detail, energy, and passion. I thought Ryan came off as more presidential (knowledgeable, skillful, energetic, and showing leadership) than Romney in some ways.
In some of his past actions, Ryan seems to be a refreshing change from the traditional politician. He has taken positions on issues in which he strongly believes, regardless of whether it is considered popular or not. That would seem to be a change from Mitt Romney’s reputation, which has had some aspects of changing policy positions when it is politically expedient (gov’t. involvement in health care, pro-choice/pro-life, his advisor’s “etch-a-sketch” comment earlier this year, which acknowledged that his general election rhetoric would likely be different than his primary election statements). This might help Romney with some voters who have felt he has lacked passion and principle.
Of course, Ryan also has been in the center of some controversy regarding which federal programs he wants to cut, and which income groups he wants to receive tax relief. Politico already has posted an article about how some Republican congressional candidates (in swing districts, Democratic-leaning districts, or those with lots of seniors) are trying to distance themselves from the presidential ticket because of Ryan’s position on Medicare and other entitlement programs.
Was Paul Ryan a good choice for the Republicans? I would say “yes,” but it also will depend on how the Obama campaign responds. For example, there is the matter of Ryan’s roll-call votes in favor of a number of bills that substantially increased the federal deficit. While Paul Ryan helps Mitt Romney fix some of Romney’s electoral vulnerabilities, will the Democrats be able to exploit Ryan’s own vulnerabilities in the general election campaign?
John Klemanski
Ryan’s selection brings some positives to the Romney campaign. He is young, smart, and a principled fiscal conservative, known for his expertise (and strong feelings) on the federal budget. In my post on July 26, I had talked about a VP nominee who could add gravitas to the Romney campaign (speaking of Rob Portman at the time), and I think Ryan certainly brings that in a big way.
In fact, during one interview with both Romney and Ryan this past week-end, I thought Ryan kind of overshadowed Romney. The interviewer asked Romney various questions, and Romney would give a brief (and somewhat superficial) response, whereupon Ryan would jump in with lots more detail, energy, and passion. I thought Ryan came off as more presidential (knowledgeable, skillful, energetic, and showing leadership) than Romney in some ways.
In some of his past actions, Ryan seems to be a refreshing change from the traditional politician. He has taken positions on issues in which he strongly believes, regardless of whether it is considered popular or not. That would seem to be a change from Mitt Romney’s reputation, which has had some aspects of changing policy positions when it is politically expedient (gov’t. involvement in health care, pro-choice/pro-life, his advisor’s “etch-a-sketch” comment earlier this year, which acknowledged that his general election rhetoric would likely be different than his primary election statements). This might help Romney with some voters who have felt he has lacked passion and principle.
Of course, Ryan also has been in the center of some controversy regarding which federal programs he wants to cut, and which income groups he wants to receive tax relief. Politico already has posted an article about how some Republican congressional candidates (in swing districts, Democratic-leaning districts, or those with lots of seniors) are trying to distance themselves from the presidential ticket because of Ryan’s position on Medicare and other entitlement programs.
Was Paul Ryan a good choice for the Republicans? I would say “yes,” but it also will depend on how the Obama campaign responds. For example, there is the matter of Ryan’s roll-call votes in favor of a number of bills that substantially increased the federal deficit. While Paul Ryan helps Mitt Romney fix some of Romney’s electoral vulnerabilities, will the Democrats be able to exploit Ryan’s own vulnerabilities in the general election campaign?
John Klemanski
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