Wall Street Journal highlights Paul Ryan.

[pkbites]

When I posted some months ago that Paul Ryan was a Republican to keep an eye on, I was kind of rebuffed.

But here he comes, folks. And this is just the beginning. Don't say I didn't call it!

[Nametag]

No, you were rebuffed because you predicted he'd be on the presidential ticket in 2012, which was arrant nonsense. He might run for the senate, but VP? Nah. (Which is reassuring, because while I don't think any Republican is going to beat Obama in 2012, I hate seeing delusional ideologues on any major ticket)(Of course, Ryan might just be another cynical up'n'comer, running his mouth to get famous, and to get traction with real delusional ideologues -- risky, that)

[pkbites]

Originally Posted by Nametag

No, you were rebuffed because you predicted he'd be on the presidential ticket in 2012

I said I thought he was was setting himself up to be, and that I could see it happening. These were statements of opinion based on observation, not predictions.

What I did proclaim boldly was:

Originally Posted by pkbites

keep your eyes open for him. He's young, attractive, conservative, and is emerging as the ideological leader of the Republican party.

[gonzomax]

He looked like an accountant and his speech was not exciting at all. He delivered it poorly . He is a boring speaker. His message was a rehash of overused and bullshit right wing talking points.
This thread just highlights how desperate the right wing is to find a leader. They allowed Bachmann to deliver after him. How could they do that?. That just enforces the idea that the right is fractured . One side actually wants to govern for the wealthy. The other wants to appeal to those who the same policies have beaten into the ground and have made angry.

[Really Not All That Bright]

Assuming the Republicans really want to elevate Ryan, this assignment is a tremendous own goal. Making Ryan the face of unpopular spending cuts all but guarantees that the voters aren't going to to be interested come 2012.

[Jophiel]

Originally Posted by Really Not All That Bright

Assuming the Republicans really want to elevate Ryan, this assignment is a tremendous own goal. Making Ryan the face of unpopular spending cuts all but guarantees that the voters aren't going to to be interested come 2012.

Paul Ryan is already revising the GOP pledge to cut $100 billion from the budget down to $50-60 billion. Part of that is the GOP saying that the budget is smaller than expected (since the 2011 one didn't pass) and much of it is pro-rated because of the shorter budget year.

One can't help but assume that reducing your program hacking and slashing by half might not entirely disappoint those looking towards the 2012 elections even as the explain the broken pledge to the fiscal hawks with accounting magic.

[Captain Amazing]

Originally Posted by gonzomax

He looked like an accountant and his speech was not exciting at all. He delivered it poorly . He is a boring speaker. His message was a rehash of overused and bullshit right wing talking points.

I don't think he delivered it that poorly. I mean, I didn't agree with a lot of what he said, but it wasn't a Bobby Jindal sort of thing. He laid out his points competently enough, didn't stutter, didn't make any major gaffes.

This thread just highlights how desperate the right wing is to find a leader. They allowed Bachmann to deliver after him. How could they do that?

They didn't allow her to do anything. They couldn't really do anything to stop her. But they did make it clear that hers wasn't the official Republican response and that she was just one person with her own point of view.

[Zakalwe]

Originally Posted by Captain Amazing

They didn't allow her to do anything. They couldn't really do anything to stop her. But they did make it clear that hers wasn't the official Republican response and that she was just one person with her own point of view.

Well you should tell that to every talking head on TV, since all they did pre-speech (and post Ryan) was talk about how unusual it was for the leadership to "allow" two responses and how that must mean that the Tea Party was exercising their new power in Congress.

[gonzomax]

The Repubs have shown for a long time that they have their party under control. They vote in a block. The sit back and shut up when the party bosses speak.
Now they have a fracture. They have a sect that they do not control. It should be fun watching them battle.

[Cisco]

Originally Posted by Captain Amazing

They didn't allow her to do anything. They couldn't really do anything to stop her. But they did make it clear that hers wasn't the official Republican response and that she was just one person with her own point of view.

LOL.

[Zakalwe]

Originally Posted by gonzomax

The Repubs have shown for a long time that they have their party under control. They vote in a block. The sit back and shut up when the party bosses speak.
Now they have a fracture. They have a sect that they do not control. It should be fun watching them battle.

Yeah, the recent votes on the PATRIOT Act and UN bills, plus the pulling of a trade bill are interesting. The Republicans have been a small tent party for so long, they're not used to handling factions.

Of course, the Democrats have never NOT had factions, so a whole lot less is expected of them on the discipline front.

[Richard Parker]

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. Ryan is marginally more serious about budgeting than the rest of his party, making him a darling of conservative fiscal hawks. But there's two problems: First, a majority of Americans now trust Obama over the GOP on deficits, meaning deficits won't be a winning issue for the GOP in 2012. (Cite.) And second, Ryan will only ever appeal to one part of the ever-polarizing GOP coalition.

ETA: Updated poll shows GOP up by a few points -- but the point stands that the GOP has bigger advantages on other issues.

[Qin Shi Huangdi]

Hasn't Congressman Ryan said he was open to raising taxes to reduce the deficit?

[furt]

Originally Posted by Richard Parker

In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. Ryan is marginally more serious about budgeting than the rest of his party, making him a darling of conservative fiscal hawks. But there's two problems: First, a majority of Americans now trust Obama over the GOP on deficits, meaning deficits won't be a winning issue for the GOP in 2012. (Cite.) And second, Ryan will only ever appeal to one part of the ever-polarizing GOP coalition.

ETA: Updated poll shows GOP up by a few points -- but the point stands that the GOP has bigger advantages on other issues.

Did you read your own cite?

5. Who do you trust to do a better job handling [ITEM] - (Obama) or (the Republicans in Congress)?

12/12/10 - Summary Table

Obama Reps
a. The economy 44 45
b. The federal budget deficit 39 47
c. The threat of terrorism 41 41
d. The situation in Afghanistan 41 39
e. Health care reform 51 38
f. Helping the middle class 53 38
g. Taxes 43 44

Personally, I'm in the "neither" camp, but clearly the deficit is their best issue.

[Least Original User Name Ever]

Originally Posted by Qin Shi Huangdi

Hasn't Congressman Ryan said he was open to raising taxes to reduce the deficit?

I don't know, has he? Also, if he has, I sure haven't heard it in any of his proposals.


What, are we talking about taxing pensions or benefits?

[Richard Parker]

Yes, furt, I read my own cite. You excluded the historical trends, and I inadvertently posted the one-month-old version. Here's the one I meant to link.

As of January, Obama now has a three-point lead over the GOP on deficits, and has lead except for the month I posted. The GOP is closer in other categories, and that is consistent with the historical trend.