Romney Goes Bold: Paul Ryan selected for VP

Menzies House U.S. Politics Editor Amir Iljazi on Mitt Romney's choice of Paul Ryan as VP

Multiple sources (not including the Mitt VP App) have now confirmed that Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan will be selected as Mitt Romney’s running-mate in a formal appearance in Norfolk, VA at 9am EST this morning. I will be the first to admit that while I had Congressman Ryan in my Final Four Veepstakes Bracket, he was the fourth most likely of those I wrote about in that post. The reason he was ranked lowest of the four… he is by far the riskiest of choices, but risky may be exactly what Mitt Romney has been looking for all along. 

In selecting Congressman Ryan Mitt Romney has now made the 2012 election not just a referendum on President Obama… but a referendum on the policies of liberal progressives that have been a staple of the Democratic Party for more than fifty years. Paul Ryan is a bold thinker who has championed two very gutsy reforms: Entitlement Reform and Tax Reform. Congressman Ryan’s Budget has been a source of great controversy as it faced a barrage of attacks from the left, but also some on the right. The 2012 election will be squarely fought on battle-lines not just about the unemployment outlook and the deficit, but also the future of entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security and also the best way forward on meaningful tax reform. Keep in mind, when I say tax reform, I mean actual reform and not just a debate about the tax rates.

Here you have the GOP 2012 ticket: Romney/Ryan 2012

Mr. Romney has wanted this election… in fact... he NEEDS this election to be about policy, and NOT personality. If he has in fact picked Paul Ryan, he may have assured just that.

Amir Iljazi is the U.S. Politics Editor of Menzies House. He earned his Master's Degree in Political Science at American University in Washington, D.C. and currently resides in Tampa, Florida. Before relocating back to Florida, he specialized in longitudinal campaign tracking and voter trends for Federal Races nationwide while working for a Washington DC based center-right political advocacy organisation. You may follow him on Twitter@Michi83

Comments

[jumbo]

1.

...hmmm...Paul Ryan...know nothing about him...I would prefer Allen West....I think Allen West is to much to the right in the Republican Party for Romney's liking...as Romney is a Center Leftist of the Republican Party and a all round nice guy...and Ryan seems kind of the same by what I've read...pity...Romney doesn't seem to have enough mongrel in him to take on Obama in my view....to go after Obama you need to have all guns blazing....ok we shall see....

[TerjeP]

2.

Voted for making the patriot act permanent, voted against medical marijuana, voted for tarp and bailout of GM and Chrysler. Does not sound like a friend of liberty. In fact sounds like an enemy of liberty.

[John Mc]

3.

You could at least acknowledge his commitment to reducing government spending, small government in general and his love of the American model as defined by the Founding Fathers. All things I'm sure you're actually aware of, Terje. Not to mention a family man and all round nice guy.

jumbo, if you like Alan West then you'll like Paul Ryan.

[John Mc]

4.

For those who haven't heard of Paul Ryan, his response to Obama's State of the Union address is worth watching:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5CcdffQ0Ic#/watch?v=B5CcdffQ0Ic

[John Mc]

5.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5CcdffQ0Ic#/watch?v=B5CcdffQ0Ic

[Amir]

6.

Please read the piece I linked to in this post, in my Final Four, Paul Ryan was profiled if you're looking for info about him.

[jumbo]

7.

...ok Mc...as you say...I just love Allen West...however, if Mitt goes with Ryan...I hold my tongue...and hope they win...fingers crossed...better than whats there now...

[oldskool]

8.

Romney I have no doubt made a calculated and well considered choice.

[Amir]

9.

I was just having a conversation with a certain Mr. Andrews and I added this to my initial thoughts:

I think Romney went against the grain and I think it's a gamble, but I believe that this pick signals that Romney wants this election to have a decisive outcome... either way.

[Tom Skene]

10.

Romney has done what McCain did last Pres election

He had chosen a VP seen as far to the right of himself to counter the views of those who see Romney as too,"liberal"

Thus McCain chose the loopy Palin.
Ryan is no Palin but will fill the same role for this poll..once the Dems get onto him
His hard line views on medicare for the oldies will scare the pants off them and be a great blessing to Obama,, In the USA the old vote...,as will his views on entitlements scare many
Many who are now inactive will get out to vote and should now ensure a huge victory for Obama
Ryan is a hard-right Catholic,,,on items like abortion..Cardinal pell would,love him if he were here...but he will be death to what slim chances Romney ever had.
Watch him slide down in the polls now
Again a right-wing party destroys itself by it's self-indulgent views..enjiy the moment but beware
the coming months
the end will be brutal and disasterous for the right

[Amir]

11.

I have to tell you Tom, that when Paul Ryan's Budget plan was released, there was a barrage of attacks on him and it in paid advertising and public speeches. Recent polling from a DEM-leaning polling firm actually showed the favorability of that plan was higher in the swing states than Obamacare. Also, Ryan can articulate his plan to the elderly in a way that nobody else can, he is tenacious debater and will bring with him facts and figures that NOBODY will be able to refute. I agree on the face that it is risky and this will be the attack, but I do NOT agree that the cake is baked on how it plays out; that will be determined by how the Romney/Ryan campaign handles it.

[pk]

12.

There's just not enough far right religious women to vote for Ryan and get them arcoss the line. Any thinking woman of ANY stripe will run a mile from a man who wishes to bestow more rights on a 4 cell embryo than the woman carrying it.

[Amir]

13.

Yes PK, because no pro-life ticket has ever been elected President of the United Sates while running against someone who isn't pro-life... and actually for the first time in several years, the number of Pro-Life Americans outnumbers those on the other end. I certainly understand your point, but in the grand-scheme I don't believe the election will be won or lost on that battleline. The "War on Women" meme from the Obama Administration is a fantasy, and I would love for an Administration who has cost hundreds of thousands of women their jobs and their health care to try and run on some phony narrative that they are protecting them, they aren't.

[Marvin]

14.

For some reason, Romney and Ryan remind me of Batman and Robin......Kapow !

[pk]

15.

"The "War on Women" meme from the Obama Administration is a fantasy"

The war on planned parenthood IS a direct assault on women, as much as you'd like to wish it not so.

[pk]

16.

""The "War on Women" meme from the Obama Administration is a fantasy"

OLRY?

http://www.theage.com.au/world/offensive-and-indefensible-candidate-may-step-down-after-legitimate-rape-claims-20120821-24j3d.html

[bluebell]

17.

I am a conservative by nature....and even I find the American right bordering on loopy, and though I don't approve of some of Obama's policies I actually hope he gets another term. Overall, this President has dome a pretty decent job considering the monumental mess he inherited. A collapse in America's economy, and the inherited Bush wars. I applaud him for getting Bin Laden and, I also applaud him for trying to get decent medical care for America's poor. No President can get everything right, but I think Obama overall is a decent guy trying his best. In the beginning I was dead set against this guy, but over time I have softened my stance. Personally I think Romney would be disastrous as POTUS.

[bluebell]

18.

Lol - now that you mention it, they DO don't they!! Romney comes across like a plastic man - like some here I would have preferred Alan West. But they are now stuck with rich boy Romney and his elitism will be a problem for many.

[Anton]

19.

I also hope Obama gets another term.

Because I have been buying gold bullion.
(nothing wrong with self interest)

[Oldman]

20.

You need to pray that the Aus$ falls against the US$ while the gold price remains constant or increases. I can't see this happening in the short to medium term and while the US remains as good as bankrupt. Try race 7 number 7 in Sydney tomorrow instead. :)

[Anton]

21.

Gold is money without a counterparty risk - it is real money. When the US$ collapses gold (priced in US$) must appreciate. It is a zero sum game.

Right now the US$ holds its value, and the US government can borrow at near zero interest for one reason only - the US$ is not the Euro. When the Euro implodes the US$ loses its "even worse" alternative.

Having Obama the socialist at the helm of the US economy makes it all so much more likely.

Owning gold is like going short on socialism.

[Oldman]

22.

When the US$ collapses gold (priced in US$) must appreciate. It is a zero sum game.

True but when the US$ falls, the Aus$ increases which negates the price of Gold purchased in Aus$. Unless you are prepared to speculate and buy & sell at margins of 1-3% you may have to wait a while to make a decent profit.

[Anton]

23.

The A$ is a proxy for iron ore and base metals, not gold.

Currencies can rise and fall against each other, but they can all fall simultaneously only against gold. Platinum and silver have industrial applications, so are not true money (but might do well). Industrial applications for gold are insignificant.

Currently Europe and the US are steering us into either global recession or hyperinflation. Australia can't escape if China has no customers.

Ron Paul would have stuffed my investment if he became POTUS

[Abraham]

24.

I never thought I'd ever utter these words ... but Bluebell I completely disagree with you.

America's 44th white president - I'm not sexist so I prefer to acknowledge the mother who raised him instead of the absent father - has been a disater irrespective of what problems he has inherited from Big W. Obama is a hard-core socialist posturing as a centrist.

The concerns beseiging his administration - Fast and Furious is one example - will not evaporate soon. What is a major worry, and bear in mind the American system is design as such, is that no POTUS can serve more than two terms. This basically ensures the second term is a free-for-all. It is with this reality in mind that Obama must not be returned to office.

Obama has exploited his 50% blackness to paint himself as 100% black. He has never acknowledged his other 50%. Why? Political expediency.

[Oldman]

25.

The A$ is a proxy for iron ore and base metals, not gold.

Currencies can rise and fall against each other, but they can all fall simultaneously only against gold.

You are all over the shop as well, you seems to have a problem understanding basic maths. Assuming:
1. You purchased gold in Aus$ at today's price
2. The gold price in US$s remains static
3. The Aus$ falls against the US$ to 70c US
4. You then decide to sell your gold...

Your profit = 33.33%

Your original assumption is wrong, the price of gold has little to do with Obama and more to do with "Safe haven currencies" and, if you purchase gold in Aus$s, then the value of the Aus$ against the Greenback.

In my opinion, you've missed the boat and will need to wait another 12-18 months for the next boat.

http://www.perthmintbullion.com/handlers/MetalChart.ashx?metalType=gold&cache=1716270473&currencyId=1&timePeriod=OneYear

[Anton]

26.

Thankfully I don't take financial advice from you.

The gold price in US$s remains static

That is what people are betting against when they buy gold. When the US$ collapses, shortly after the Euro explodes, gold will be worth more than today against all fiat currencies.

Otherwise I am wrong and socialism can create wealth and prosperity for all.

Bet however you feel, its your money