Paul Ryan (Veep tomorrow?) destroys Obamacare in 6 minutes.

[_bcspace]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPxMZ1WdINs

Of course he's saying (truthfully) much of what I've been saying all along. by the way, word is this guy will be Veep. I'm all for it if true.

[_Bond James Bond]

[_bcspace]

Ah, the carefree laugh of the ignorant. They won't even realize what hit them until decades later when historians lump them in with Carter as one-termers.

[_palerobber]

Democrats have been trying to tie Romney to the Ryan budget all summer -- thanks Romney for attaching the millstone to your own neck for us!

whatismore, Romney making this pick is a de facto endorsement of Ryan's plan to phase out Medicare.

this was the best possible pick for Democrats from among the short listers. i really thought Romney would make a smart, safe pick like Portman or Pawlenty. i guess his advisers could see he's on a losing trajectory and needed to shake things up. this is the Palin pick all over again. so awesome.

[_palerobber]

by the way, here's Ryan delivering a video love letter to his political role model: anti-Christian icon Ayn Rand.

[Guest]

hey bcspace,

check out this recent pic of Paul Ryan showing appropriate respect for and solidarity with a non Judeo-Christian religious minority.

i'm guessing that you will conclude from it that Ryan's not a real American, nor a true Christian, and wants to go around the country apologizing for US gun violence.


http://Twitter.com/BuzzFeedAndrew/statu ... 61/photo/1

[Guest]

Certainly a bold choice. It's hard to think of two more dissimilar white male Politicians from working class backgrounds than Joe Biden and Paul Ryan. I'm sure we will have a lot of spirited discussions in the coming weeks as to the implications of his budget proposals, but I thought I would make some observations about the pick and what it means.

1. Choosing Ryan for Veep over a safer choice like Pawlenty means Romney feels that energizing the base is more important than reaching to the center. Rand could also be payback to all of his deep pocket donors by putting a [s]tax slasher[/s], uh, I mean fiscal conservative, on the ticket.

2. Conversely, this may help energize the base of the Democratic Party in a way the choice of a more moderate Republican never could.

3. This leaves the ticket a tad weak in foreign policy. It's hard to imagine Romney sending a 42 year old policy wonk to troubleshoot a foreign crisis.

4. The gloves are coming off, and the brass knuckles are going on. There is going to be some vicious punching and counter-punching in the TV ads.

6. Red beans and rice will not be served at the Republican Convention.

7. Both Romney and Ryan are being asked to sell their souls to get elected. Romney may be the first Presidential Candidate who is desperately running away from his signature accomplishment in government. Ryan has already tried to deny his devotion to Ayn Rand, and by the end of the campaign will be saying he's never heard of her. The Conservative SuperPacs will be working overtime on how to wrestle the word "compassionate" into a description of a Ryan budget proposal.

8. I'm not sure George Romney would approve.

9. Wisconsin will change its state motto to: 'Eat Cheese or Die'.

10. Whoever wins this election is going to have a hard time governing.

[_beastie]

I do think this says that Romney is very worried about his base, which isn't a good sign for him.

Of course, I, like other democrats, am thrilled. Tying the Ryan budget to Romney, along with how it fundamentally alters Medicare, will likely alienate many older voters as well as independents. And it will energize democrats in a way no other pick could.

Romney has to know these things, so the fact that he still felt like this was the right choice means he knows he's still in trouble with the base. I also think that Romney is desperate to get the focus off his taxes, and this pick will likely do that, at least for a while. So he'd rather take a hit with seniors and independents than have the focus continue as is. lol

Ps. medot, I think you're spot on.

[_Bond James Bond]

I do think this says that Romney is very worried about his base, which isn't a good sign for him.

From what I've read Ryan has been forced on Romney a bit by Republican establishment. Dumping the information on Friday midnight suggests this would be a lukewarm pick.

Of course, I, like other democrats, am thrilled. Tying the Ryan budget to Romney, along with how it fundamentally alters Medicare, will likely alienate many older voters as well as independents. And it will energize democrats in a way no other pick could.

Romney has to know these things, so the fact that he still felt like this was the right choice means he knows he's still in trouble with the base. I also think that Romney is desperate to get the focus off his taxes, and this pick will likely do that, at least for a while. So he'd rather take a hit with seniors and independents than have the focus continue as is. lol

This. The plan to privatize Medicare just put the base of the Republicans, old white people, into play. The one good thing I can say about Bob Ryan was he was against SOPA and is for internet freedom.

[_EAllusion]

Who a vice presidential pick is has almost zero impact on the outcome of the election. Paul Ryan probably won't even provide enough of a bump in WI to get Romney over. Let's not get carried away in thinking this will move huge swaths of voters in any direction.

Democrats have been trying to attack Romney for associating with the Ryan budget because the Ryan budget drastically reforms entitlements and drastically reduces taxes for the wealthy at the expense of the poor, so that will now be a clear focus for their campaigning. But the fact that they're going to run on that and not something else will have less of an impact on the eventual outcome than you might think.