Mitt Romney has picked Gabe from The Office as the GOP's vice-presidential nominee.
Actually, it's Paul Ryan, who will be cooped up on a bus with Mitt for the next four days touring battleground states.
So, your GOP veep choice wants to privatize Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Looks like my work is done here. Mitt Romney just assured a 2-to-1 margin for Obama-Biden among retirees (even the white ones) and Democratic victory in November.
Ryan is a gift, fellow Dems. Run hard! Four more years!
Update 07:59 CDT: Two days ago, The Week gave five good reasons not to pick Ryan for VP. Reasons #1 and #2: The Ryan budget and Medicare.
Update 08:20 CDT: Even Dr. Blanchard recognizes the Ryan risk:
Paul Ryan would be the most daring choice of all. Ryan is a very articulate, personable, and intelligent politician. He looks good on camera. He is also the author of the Ryan Plan. That involves terrible risks. The Obama campaign will run hundreds of ads showing Romney/Ryan pushing grandma over the cliff [Ken Blanchard, "Romney, Ryan, and the Veep Stakes," South Dakota Politics, August 11, 2012].
Blanchard does relish (as do I) how the Ryan pick should focus our attention on real policy questions.
Update 08:58 CDT: Election guru Nate Silver says that the Ryan pick shows Romney is feeling bearish and that Ryan is "not a pick you make if you think you're ahead." Romney only has to go bold if he thinks he's losing. And he's going bold with a choice that plays well only with the right-wing base... which he already ought to have locked up by now.
Romney/Ryan republicans religionize wretching: wrench raillery, ridicule, and roaring rather riotously.
Yup. Wrap a bow around the Senior vote and hand it to Obama. But there's more to it than that. Notice that the announcement is taking place on a battleship. These guys want to INCREASE the defense budget and decrease taxes on the most affluent, balancing the budget on the backs of the most vulnerable among us.
There is an agreement in place that calls for cuts to both entitlements and defense if congress can't get its act together. Thanks to guys like Ryan, they haven't. Now they want to change the deal. Thanks but no thanks Paul.
This could be one of the most immoral presidential tickets ever to run for office. It's all about money and power at the expense of the very fabric of our citizenry.
The rise of the dark Sith Lords.
Sarumon and Sauron engineering the machinery of war and devistation.
If they get elected, there will be no Shire to return home to, Frodo... um, I mean Luke... er... Cory.
Neither of them have been open to answering questions about their economic plans. In a way it is the perfect nomination: the debate will be focused on the very issues that make them unelectable. Ryan's budget and Mitt's voodoo tax plan comprise the worst of the worst, trumping all other issues in the election from my perspective.
I also see Huntsman is speaking at the Democratic Convention. It would be hilarious if Mitt lost the Mormon vote.
[CAH: Huntsman at DNC? Just a rumor! Huntsman daughters deny!]
It's as if the DNC was able to infiltrate the Romney campaign to make President Obama conservatism look sane.
R-money was able to convince the families of Latin American death squads to finance Bain:
http://www.democracynow.org/2012/8/10/romneys_death_squad_ties_bain_launched
The "Dyin' With Ryan Plan" now describes: (1) Ryan's plan for Medicare and health care in general and (2) Romney's chances to win the presidency.
“The new Ryan budget is a remarkable document—one that, for most of the past half-century, would have been outside the bounds of mainstream discussion due to its extreme nature. In essence, this budget is Robin Hood in reverse—on steroids. It would likely produce the largest redistribution of income from the bottom to the top in modern U.S. history and likely increase poverty and inequality more than any other budget in recent times (and possibly in the nation’s history).â€
http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/economic-intelligence/2012/03/22/paul-ryan-budget-wont-solve-deficit-crisis
There are so many disconnects in the Romney/Ryan plan that it's hard to know where to start, but here's the best:
Government does not create jobs; increasing defense spending will create jobs.
Yes Eve! Exactly! And for the announcement, they both come running off a battleship! (shades of "Mission Accomplished")... Even though neither one of them has ever served a day in the military. Can you imagine the GOP response if two non-military-serving Dems did that?
Now that Willard has chosen a desperatedly wounded rabid catholic as a running mate, independents will flee the earth hater party in search of a more secular candidate like Gary Johnson. South Dakota might even go blue.
That battleship, in Norfolk, Virginia: a ship and a city built by big government spending. Paul Ryan got Social Security benefits after his dad died; that money helped him pay for college, which then launched him into a career of politics and government employment. This nomination could be more fun than Palin's.
Cory, you've figured it out. Ryan is known here in Wisconsin as the sort of hypocrite that epitomizes the contradictions of the Tea Party, which is a big business-big government astroturf construct that has fooled real conservatives. Ryan not only supported the bank bailouts, he was a head cheerleader for them because he's always been the darling of Wall Streeters. He supports big government spending, as long as it goes to his wealthy supporters, and not to the middle class.
John Nichols from Wisconsin has a good piece on Ryan.
http://www.opednews.com/articles/Paul-Ryan-Seriously-by-John-Nichols-120810-852.html
How did a draft dodger and some other civilian earth hater get a gig on a Navy vessel?
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-ryan-pick-cements-lack-of-military-service-in-presidential-campaign-20120811,0,3674072.story
THANK YOU Mitt Romney is all I have to say.
The Clown Show continues over at the GOP: one huge walking, talking contradiction of a ticket. LOL
The Farm Bill might just be one thing that adds to a lack of enthusiasm in the farm belt. Not just for the cuts to farm subsidies and insurance, but also the $100 billion Ryan wants to cut from SNAP/Food Stamps.
The farm belt red states also represent the largest beneficiaries of SNAP benefits.
The farm belt is also the Bible belt.
Ryan's devotion to Ayn Rand and social Darwinism conflict with many religious voters. Heck, there is even a large group of influential Catholics, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, say that Ryans plan fails the test of morals. Many evangelical leaders have also panned the Ryan plan.
Not to mention Newt Gingrich called the Ryan plan right wing social engineering...you don't suppose that will end up in an ad anywhere..?
Romney polling at 39% in Investor's Business Daily/Christian Science Monitor/TIPP Poll:
http://www.pollingreport.com/wh12gen.htm
Ryan budget guts coverage, threatens protection for LBGTQ families:
http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2012/04/11/462869/ryan-budget-lgbt/
Oh well on the Huntsman rumor, not a big deal. That's what I get for believing something printed on breitbart.com. I feel dirty now that you all know I was on that site in the first place.
Cory,
I know in some circles every question is answered by a poll or impact on an election. People like that would infer the Ryan pick "would not be one you would make if you were ahead."
BUT if you thought the most important challenge to during your Presidency was the dual, yet related, challenges of a government spending us into bankruptcy (threatening the safety net) and jobs/economy, you would make sure you had the team to deal with it.
PS. Bill, you are a bit shrill. For all your teams supposed "glee" on the pick, there seems to be a bit of panic. Did you wake up and say "Oh, crap?". Sure looks like it.
Troy: show us a Dem who's panicked over the Ryan pick? From what's been seen it's somewhere between hilarity and mirth.
The battleship was a perfect pick- An obsolete warship for an obsolete ideology.
Troy,
I've asked before where you get the rose colored glasses. I really need a pair although I doubt I can afford them.
The bigger question it seems to me is one of core values. Romney has the rep as a flip flopper. Ryan was an Ayn Rand disciple who now claims to reject her.
Also Romney is the rich guy. Ryan's net worth went from about $600,000 to over $3 million while he's served in Congress.
I know that Ryan is golden boy who is young and "serious," but he hasn't put forward a single defense cut in his budget. Nearly cut he's proposed is kicked down the road.
Shrill? Me?
Dang. I hate when I do that.
Okay I'll go down an octave.
Thanks Troy!
(Baritone range)
I am pleased that Mitt has chosen Ryan as a running mate. It brings focus to the race and allows Dems the opportunity to land hard punches. Before, all we were doing was playing whack-a-mole to Romney's rope-a-dope. Now we can have a debate with substance. Hurrah. (...ok that last note is still a little high for me without having to slip into falsetto.)
my snowplow to bill's snowman: my Nicholson to Fleming's Burl Ives.
Sounds about right, Kurtz.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z622Koz5C-o
Grudz, how about a grilled cheese for Larry?
Troy, there is no panic.
Wow what a grear question to ask Kristi about supporting Ryan and getting rid of the farm plan.
How about an article on Paul Ryan's record on voting on veteran issues for a little symmetry with last week? Lots of interesting votes there for sure.
Moses: exactly! Get to DakotaFest in Mitchell and get that question on the debate agenda with Varilek!
Justin: holy cow! You want me to do real, substantive work and discuss the issues? What do you think I am, a journalist? ;-)
"Pentagon money-saving initiatives that Panetta proposed — and Congress rejected — include raising TRICARE fees for military retirees, reducing pay raises, shutting down excess infrastructure, retiring aging aircraft, ending production of several weapon systems and decommissioning several Navy ships." National Defense Mag.