Mitt Romney, who has been criticized by members of his party in recent weeks for not campaigning aggressively enough and who trails President Obama in polls in most swing states, placed the blame for his campaign’s struggles squarely on the president himself Sunday afternoon.
Speaking to reporters as his private charter plane flew from Los Angeles to Denver, Mr. Romney blamed his relatively languid campaign schedule — five public events in the past seven days, compared with 11 fund-raisers — on the president’s decision to opt out of the federal campaign finance system four years ago, and criticized Mr. Obama for, he said, “trying to fool people into thinking that I think things I don’t.”
… or perhaps being a better campaigner?
Sample local reaction: “Well that place is now forever tainted - ‘Romney and Ryan are due to appear at a campaign event in Norfolk, Va…beside the USS Wisconsin.’”
Happening soon: Romney introduces Paul Ryan as his VP pick. Watch over here. The local paper is covering too. (And follow our tag here.)
The Christian Science Monitor’s comparison of the Paul Ryan and Obama deficit plans nails things with a single sentence: “As Obama himself noted today, this fiscal confrontation represents a profound disagreement about the nature of government.”
There’s more to it than that. But that one sentence says more about the differences between the philosophies of the two than anything we can put together. Maybe Paul Ryan should run for president in 2012. Because, clearly, Obama’s giving him more attention than any other member of Congress now, and he’s clearly looking at an ideological fight that the American people should answer to. What direction do we want for our country in the long term: Paul Ryan’s or Obama’s? Or is it somewhere in-between? That’s the real question here. By giving it so much attention — and such a tough rebuttal — that’s effectively what Obama just did. By putting the Ryan plan on a pedestal, then knocking it over, he raised Paul Ryan’s stature even further. Unlike any of the fights with Sarah Palin or Michele Bachmann or Donald Trump, this is about actual real non-trivial stuff. If we were the GOP, we’d be poking at Paul Ryan to convince him to run, stat.
To put it simply, there was a period in the early part of the GOP primary race where the candidates were looking extremely boring or unserious — Donald Trump was a thing at this point — and (rather than paying attention to them) Obama responded by focusing heavily on Ryan’s budget plan, even if he disagreed with it. Even though Ryan didn’t run for president then, the point above is the fundamental conversation our country now gets to have on a national scale. Whether or not you like Ryan, he bumps up the “maturity” factor of the 2012 campaign significantly and could help Romney from getting sucked into another “Etch A Sketch” blender for a news cycle.
U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan is in his seventh term in Congress representing Wisconsin’s First Congressional District. He is Chairman of the House Budget Committee, where he has worked tirelessly leading the effort to reign in federal spending and increase accountability to taxpayers. He also serves on the House Ways and Means Committee, where he has focused on simplifying the tax code and making health care more affordable and accessible.
In January 2010, Ryan gained attention nationwide after unveiling his “Roadmap for America’s Future,” a proposal to eliminate the federal deficit, reform the tax code, and preserve entitlements for future generations.
Representative Ryan was born in Janesville, Wisconsin on January 29, 1970. A fifth-generation Wisconsin native, Ryan was the youngest of four children born to Paul Ryan Sr., who worked as an attorney, and Betty, a stay-at-home mom.
In April 2000, Ryan proposed to Janna Little, a native Oklahoman, at one of his favorite fishing spots, Big St. Germain Lake in Wisconsin. Later that year, the two were married in Oklahoma City.
The Ryans reside in Janesville with their three children, Liza, Charlie and Sam. The family are parishioners at St. John Vianney Catholic Church.
Upon entering Congress in January of 1999, Ryan was the youngest member of the freshmen class at the age of 28. Prior to running for Congress, Ryan served as an aide to Republican Senators Robert Kasten Jr. and Sam Brownback, former U.S. Rep. and Vice Presidential Candidate Jack Kemp, and as a speechwriter for Education Secretary William Bennett.
Ryan is a graduate of Joseph A. Craig High School in Janesville and earned degrees in economics and political science from Miami University in Ohio. He is an avid outdoorsman and is a member is of his local archery association, the Janesville Bowmen.
Something tells us it may be hard for him to keep up that membership with the Janesville Bowmen. Romney announced it via his app, though media outlets broke the news last night.
Flipping burgers at McDonald’s, steering the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, slinging cheap margaritas, and toning abs and pecs. That’s about the extent of Rep. Paul Ryan’s private sector experience.Politico’s Jonathan Martin • Discussing a glaring problem were Mitt Romney to pick Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate: He has little experience in the private sector, something Romney himself is pushing very hard. Ryan’s business experience? Limited to working at his family’s construction business only a few months. On the other hand, The Wall Street Journal just gave him some serious backing, noting that Ryan’s pick would give Romney a chance to win on big issues (with Ryan’s fiscal background offering up those big issues), rather than losing on small ones.
If they’re not willing to say that — that’s their prerogative — but clearly they’re not Mitt Romney delegates.A national Republican Party leader • Discussing an issue with Republican delegates in Massachusetts — sixteen Ron Paul backers who defeated Mitt Romney’s picks — who were disqualified after failing to file affidavits pledging their support to Romney. The delegates say the affidavits were a ploy, and they were received the forms less than a week before the set deadline. Republican leaders are reportedly concerned that the Paul-supporting delegates may cause trouble at the Tampa convention next month. Paul has officially stopped campaigning, but his supporters hope to make their presence known at the convention.
» Should Mitt be worried? Clearly, Paul’s attempt at building a campaign is a bit unorthodox — he only has 80 delegates, but he could end up stealing some of Romney’s if he keeps it up — but even if he can’t win outright, he could damage Romney’s campaign. As The Hill puts it: “National Republicans worry that if grassroots party loyalists aren’t supporting the presumptive nominee, the party could struggle against President Obama’s fundraising and organizational efforts.”
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Suspended Campaign of the Day: Newt Gingrich finally, officially, has waved the white flag. At a press conference happening now in Arlington, VA, Gingrich announced the suspension of his campaign for the GOP nomination, calling his run “an amazing year” for himself and his wife, Callista.
More to come.
[bi]
Eh, took so long that by the end it was kind of a non-story.](http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m3evujbhYb1qzpwi0o1_500.jpg)
Suspended Campaign of the Day: Newt Gingrich finally, officially, has waved the white flag. At a press conference happening now in Arlington, VA, Gingrich announced the suspension of his campaign for the GOP nomination, calling his run “an amazing year” for himself and his wife, Callista.
More to come.
[bi]
Eh, took so long that by the end it was kind of a non-story.
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Newt Gingrich’s banking his dimming hopes on Delaware: “We’re going to try to deliver this for you, Mr. Speaker,” said State Sen. Colin Bonini, one of the former House Speaker’s supporters in the state. Gingrich has suggested that if he doesn’t win this, that’s it for him. Wait, he’s still running? source
I’m not going to even discuss the process anymore. I’m going to be respectful of the process he’s put in place.Florida Sen. Marco Rubio • Discussing Mitt Romney’s vice presidential process in vague enough terms that make it sound like he’s potentially in the running. Previously, he was more direct with his denials — saying “I’m not going to be the vice president” on two separate occasions in the past three weeks. Anyone want to read the tea leaves here?
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