Mitt Romney Will Announce Paul Ryan As His VP Pick

Jen Chung

Published Aug 11, 2012

Modified Aug 11, 2012

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Jen Chung

Published Aug 11, 2012

Modified Aug 11, 2012

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At an 8:45 a.m. campaign event in Norfolk, Virginia, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is expected to announce his running mate is Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan. The Washington Post reports, "The move is a bold choice for Romney and one that a number of conservatives had urged him to make in recent weeks, with some of the loudest calls coming from the pages of the Weekly Standard and the Wall Street Journal. At about 3 a.m., a new web site, Romneyryan.com, debuted, paid for by the Romney campaign."

Now Romney's campaign app says, "Mitt's choice for VP is Paul Ryan. Spread the word about America's comeback team." Ryan is most closely associated with the "Ryan Budget," his "Path to Prosperity" he offered last year, that includes tax breaks for millionaires while reforming Medicare. The NY Times wrote, before the choice was confirmed:

Mr. Ryan, 42, is a rising star in the Republican Party and a favorite among conservative activists who view him as deeply committed to their fiscal principles.

But Mr. Ryan, a member of Congress since 1999, is also a lightning rod for Democrats who view him as the driving force behind Republican efforts to sharply cut social spending and entitlement programs.

He emerged with those dueling reputations over the last several years, and became a more public symbol soon after Republicans seized control of the House of Representatives in the 2010 midterm elections.

As chairman of the House Budget Committee, he pushed his colleagues to boldly stake out an uncompromising position on budget matters, sometimes making his colleagues uncomfortable about the political dangers of his positions.

Those dangers were voiced by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich last year, who called Ryan’s budget plan “right-wing social engineering” during an interview. He was quickly and roundly scolded by his Republican colleagues.

Real Clear Politics says that Ryan is a problem for the Obama campaign: "Ryan also champions a voucher-style reform [for Medicare] and other ideas that are excellent starting points. If there is any time to champion free market ideas on that front, it's before Obamacare is codified. His budget may be wrong, but it's a lot less wrong than, say, Obama's proposed budget, which would add $11 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years."

The WaPo's Chris Cilizza wrote, in a piece called "The case against Paul Ryan for vice president:

Democrats are salivating — not literally but damn close — over the prospect of Romney putting Ryan on the ticket, believing that by doing so Romney could cost Republicans not just the presidency but the House and Senate due to the controversial budget plan that bears the Wisconsin House Member’s name....

At the center of that budget is Ryan’s call to fundamentally overhaul Medicare, a critical piece of the social safety net that has a huge impact in the life of many people older Americans.

Those older voters are also the most reliable group of voters in every election — and a critical constituency for Republicans. In 2008, Arizona Sen. John McCain won voters aged 60+ by just four points, half the margin that George W. Bush enjoyed in 2004 among that same group.

To beat Obama, Romney has to improve on McCain’s margin among older voters, and Democrats believe that will be simply impossible if he has to defend the Ryan budget every day between now and Nov. 6.

While Romney will undoubtedly have to push back against critiques of the Ryan budget, which he has praised publicly in the past, even without Ryan on the ticket, it would be a thousand times more difficult/complicated if the Wisconsin Republican was his ticketmate.

Even some conservatives aren't so sure about Ryan.

Tagged

election 2012

mitt romney

paul ryan