Mitt Romney has chosen Paul Ryan to be his running mate. Thoughts?

I guess Romney doesn’t want to win. Palin would be a better choice than Ryan. Say goodbye to the senior vote.

I’m really surprised. I thought for sure he’d try to pick someone more moderate, or possibly a person of color. Doesn’t change my plans at all, though. I was already voting for Obama.

I called it a few months ago on here. Ha! He chose Ryan because Rayn’s a strong conservative. Also because he’d need to swing Wisconsin to win his election.

I despise Ryan. It always was a no for me, however.

I’ve met Paul Ryan. Seems like a good guy.

I would think that Paul Ryan could loose Florida for him since he wants to end Medicare.

A white male. What a surprise. Not.

I agree with @johnpowell. I don’t think Romney wants to win.

His aide said it ages ago. He’ll turn to the center for the general election. Only he said it with a better metaphor that I can’t remember. But he hasn’t. He’s swung further right. Why? For whom? For what?

The base is going to come out, no matter what. This is not going to generate significantly more turnout with the people who are already for him.

He needed to bite off a chunk of the middle, and he lost a huge opportunity to do that.

Don’t get me wrong. i am grateful that Romney is making poor strategy decisions. I am grateful he is following in McCain’s footsteps. I am grateful that he ignores the science of politics—perhaps is even ignorant of what is going on in the field.

Romney is very ignorant and not someone we should have as president. We’ve had ignorant presidents before, and paid for it. I really don’t want this guy elected. But I’m still flabbergasted that he has made this choice. Maybe he secretly isn’t interested in being president.

I think Romney is bad on a number of levels (inconsistency being primary and support of the rich at the expense of everyone else being secondary). Should he be elected, I would hope to hell he remains healthy and well, because Paul Ryan would be a nightmare when I compare his view of the world to mine. That is really what I struggle with the most—I actually believe that help for the poor and suffering is a good thing and it is incomprehensible to me that others proudly promote an ideal that hurting the poor to benefit the wealthy is a good thing. I really do not get how someone could get support for saying some of the things these guys say and believe and plan to impose on the rest of us . . .

Who needs government anyway? ~

This is at least the second question on this matter. Romney and Ryan is the worst possible combination of leadership for this country. They are regressive followers of Ayn Rand and likely to send this country into a tail spin.

One guy send is money overseas and the other wants to dismantle the New Deal. I can’t imagine a worse combination unless they make Sarah Palin secretary of state. Maybe together they can find Russia.

It seems obvious that the far left doesn’t like the Ryan pick but who would be surprised by that. Ryan is the smartest guy in congress on the economy, maybe we’ll have a chance to get this country back to growth. Excellent pick.

Want some R and R? No thanks.

I’ll never forget the first time Paul Ryan made an impression on me. It was the Healthcare “Summit” called by Obama in DC. Ryan brought the thick pile of the Healthcare Reform bill, displayed it on the table in front of him to make sure it will be on camera.

It was a cheap shallow political antic. I think it was beneath any serious politician who may be destined to be a great statesman or VP or POTUS. Romney and Ryan, the Stepford Husbands.

I think, if this duo actually wins the election in November, America is doomed.

I would have thought that Ryan had more value where he was in the House than he could possibly be hidden away in the VP slot.

Now my lack of care about who wins the presidency is assured.

My immediate thoughts were that he has two first names & that i’ve no idea who the hell he is.

Ppssstt, @ucme. Here’s one example of why Romney selected Ryan. I can’t wait to see him debate Biden.

@bkcunningham Hmmm, he looks like a young Ronnie Reagan playing the Tom Hanks role in Big…& he owns a whiney voice :¬)

@ucme, nooo. The other one. That is Tim Geithner. ~

I THINK IT’S LIKE HITLER AND DR. DOOM TEAMED UP AND THE END OF THE WORLD IS UPON US!!1!!11!

Who the hell is Paul Ryan?

Also, he makes Dan Quayle look like a genius, a pretty neat trick.

@Jaxk
Moderates do not like Ryan.
Far right extremists love him.

I don’t think there is enough Vaseline to make a buggering like a Romney/Ryan White House hurt less.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard Do you remember a while back there was a budget battle where the GOP brought forth a proposal (The Ryan Budget) that had a lot of messed up things in it and was slammed not only by Democrats, but also many economists and was bad enough that a few Republicans broke from their traditional partisan lockstep to oppose it because it was that bad? He’s the guy.

@Jaxk If by ”Far Left” you mean anybody to the left of Rush Limbaugh, yes. Maybe you need to recalibrate your perspective on world standards instead of the US standards where even many of our Liberals are Conservative. Either that, or grab a dictionary and refresh your memory on the definition of “Moderate”.
As for your claim that he is the smartest guy in Congress regarding the economy, it is possible to be intelligent without agreeing with the same ideology that you and Ryan have. And the fact that he was politically inept enough to try so much change in one shot tells me that he really doesn’t have much intelligence. It’s not hard for a hardcore Conservative to win elections in a Red state, but when they hit the Really Real World, they lose that special “Big fish in a small pond” aura of awe, and no matter how smart they are about economics, no Legislator can actually affect the budget unless they can woo others to their side.
That boy isn’t ready for the big leagues, and if the Peter Principle has any truth to it, he will never rise above where he is now.

@jerv, ah, ok, I do remember that. Thanks for the refresher.

He would have been better off picking Nolan Ryan.

It is possible that Romney even now knows he’s in over his head, and wants to NOT get the job so he gets a divisive Veep pick that will ensure he loses with honor? He’s good at dodging trouble and this would be the perfect ruse to do that. I don’t think his heart is in it for the long haul, and truth be known, he is proud of his health care accomplishments in Massachusetts and it kills him inside when it gets knocked. This really is clever and he didn’t get where he is now by being stupid…Brilliant!

@jerv

You seem to have a very selective memory. If I recall, the Obama budget couldn’t even get a single Democrat to vote for it. If I use your reasoning, that would make Obama a moron. As for your definition of Moderate, it doesn’t matter what the rest of the world considers moderate since we’re electing President and VP of America. It matters what Americans think.

@Jaxk But who are ‘Americans”? In campaign stumps from both sides we hear “Americans want this, or, “Americans” want that. Or the term “The American People” is used often, from both sides. How do they know who they are talking about since it is often the case than none of them have ever gotten out to see how regular people live day to day. Have their handlers been feeding them a load of shit? So, how can “The American People” be all these things? Are the candidates just assuming shit?...because it seems to me they are way off.

@woodcutter

I would agree with you on that. I am tired of hearing what Americans want or what Americans believe, from both camps. Just tell me what you believe and I’ll decide what I believe.

I agree that is an aggravating tactic. We’ll find out what Americans believe and want in November.

We’ll find out what about half of these so called “Americans” believe and want…maybe.

@Jaxk Once again, you confuse my distaste for the current Republicans to mean that I am a Democrat. As for Obama being a moron, well, he is a politician, and since the name of the game recently is throwing out ridiculous proposals that would never fly, I am not sure if he was even serious with his budget; in fact, I doubt he was.

Regarding Moderates, remeber that New England and the West Coast are also part of the US, and much of the population of the US lives within 100 miles of the coast. It’s not all about the Midwest and the South! Now, if the states that seceded back in the mid-100s want to leave again, I’m not sure if I’d object….

But that is part of what makes America great; the ability (and right) to disagree and to do so out loud. Of course, our weakness is that the two sides have drifted far enough apart (well, one moved towards extremism while the other hasn’t…) that meaningful dialog is increasingly difficult and compromising for the greater good effectively impossible (one side does not believe in “greater good”), so we are where we are.

We’ll see come November, but I somehow doubt the Romney/Ryan ticket will get strong support from swing voters.

“IT’S CLOBBERIN’ TIME!” (again)

@jerv
Yeah, let them. But before that, make sure to do a show-civil war, in which you bomb all their industry and infrastructure, before you “concede”.

I’m already to say “welcome back, Obama!”...

*all ready..

I still say the Republican candidates are a plant by the Obama election team.

Another thought. Although they don’t admit it, Fundamentalist Christians hate Catholics as much as they hate Mormons. They might not get the base as fired up as they hoped.

^Yep @ Judi. That’s been the criticism with Ryan as a choice all along. How fired can the base really get over Romney?

Huckabee would have fired up the base.

@Judi Why do Fundamentalist Christians hate Catholics?

@Dutchess_III , Some think that the Pope is the anti Christ. Most think that infant baptism (And sprinkling instead of dunking) is not valid so they are not “real” Christians.

@Judi, do you actually know people who have told you they believe any of that? Personally, I’ve never heard anyone say those things.

Yes. I used to be a fundamentalist. (Still a Christian, just progressive. ) I was actually taught some of this stuff in a Christian school I went to in 9th grade. Since I was raised Lutheran many of them thought they needed to save my eternal soul.

You were taught that at a Lutheran school? I’m sorry, I’m confused.

No. It was a non denominational Christian school. We (my family and I ) went to a Lutheran Church so they (the kids snd staff at the school) were not quite sure if they could trust me and they really thought I should be re baptized.

LOL Okay. Thanks for sharing.