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WHAT THE COMING NOVEMBER REPUBLICAN VICTORY WILL MEAN
The odd thing about Mitt Romney’s selection of Paul Ryan as his running mate is that the news was received with elation by both sides, by both Republicans and Democrats, by both the right and the left.
Both sides see the potential upside for themselves. The right sees a vice-presidential candidate who compensates for the deficiencies of their presidential candidate, providing more energy, more regular-guy charisma, and most of all a clear and compelling vision. The left sees a candidate who has taken a strong stance in favor of a proposal they are comfortable attacking. Ryan offers them relief from having to run on a weak economy and allows them instead to run against an agenda they think is deeply unpopular.
So everybody’s happy. But as John Dickerson points out, both sides can’t be right. No matter what side you’re on, if you don’t feel a pit in the bottom of your stomach right now, you’ve lost the thread.
This is a high-risk, high-reward proposition for both sides. But the risks and rewards are not evenly distributed. The risks are much greater if you’re on the left, and the rewards are much greater if you’re on the right.
For those on the right, the downside is bad—but not as bad as you might think. While a Romney-Ryan loss may be pinned by some on Ryan’s radicalism, it is far more likely to be pinned on Romney—on his campaign’s failure to respond early enough to a ruthless negative campaign, or his awkwardness in explaining parts of his past record, or the general perception that he lacks conviction on the big issues of the day. Like Sarah Palin, Ryan is likely to be remembered as the part of the ticket people were most enthusiastic about—and unlike Palin, if Ryan goes down, it won’t be due to his own failings. He does not have a messy family life, and he has demonstrated that he is well-informed, well-prepared, and able to handle himself ably in press interviews. So if he does not become vice-president, I suspect Paul Ryan will be first in line for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
And he’ll be watching and waiting, because he knows that the economic and fiscal issues that define his agenda are not going away. In fact, he will expect that under Obama they are all going to get worse. Federal entitlement spending isn’t going to be controlled; it’s going to grow even faster once Obamacare comes fully into effect. A Democrat-controlled Senate that has gone three years without producing a budget will go four, five, six, seven years without a budget. If the economy hasn’t responded by now to fiscal and monetary stimulus, it probably won’t do so next year, either. After all, there are many European countries where Obama-like policies have kept growth permanently down at our current, anemic level of 1% to 2% per year and unemployment in double digits. So Ryan and the Republicans will be ready to say, “I told you so.”
Chuck U Farley
August 19th, 2012
“…if he is re-elected, Obama gets the “reward” of facing all the same problems he has now: a stagnant economy, a runaway debt, a hostile Congress, and a half-dozen foreign policy problems waiting to become a big, intractable crisis.”
Dude, what are you smoking? Do you really think Obysmal really gives a crap about any of that? He could care less. He doesn’t care about these problems now! By the time he’s done, we won’t even have a country left that is recognizable.
“…fundamentally transforming the United States of America…” Remember?
FreeMan - Sorry Sarah
August 19th, 2012
Win and it is over; Lose and he still has to January to screw us to the wall, and guess what, he is just the type to do it.
Bad Brad
August 19th, 2012
“The odd thing about Mitt Romney’s selection of Paul Ryan as his running mate is that the news was received with elation by both sides, by both Republicans and Democrats, by both the right and the left.”
I call bull shit. Obama is scared to death of this guy.
If we are fortunate enough to get R and R into office we still need a majority in the house and the senate, and the Tea Party will still need to hold their feet to the flames.
bitterclinger
August 19th, 2012
He does not have a messy family life, and he has demonstrated that he is well-informed, well-prepared, and able to handle himself ably in press interviews.
Once again, we see another cheap shot at Palin as described by someone who wasn’t paying attention. I’d put her up as well-informed and well-prepared as any of the people running now as well as the author of this piece.
I supposed it’s her fault that she wasn’t shackeled to a 17-year-old daughter 24/7 who managed to get pregnant — like lots of 17 year olds do — but didn’t get an abortion. Yeah, that’s right. Pro-life is in the Repub platform, right?
And how will Ryan be the top GOP candidate in ’16 if Romney is seen to have done an okay job? Did he say somewhere that he’s only doing one term?
NoMoBo
August 19th, 2012
@bitterclinger – I think the author said that Ryan would be first in line in 2016 if he wasn’t VP in 2012. In other words, if Romney loses.
Bad Brad
August 19th, 2012
bitterclinger:
That’s all white noise, if the asshole get’s in for another 4, the damage will be done, and so will we.
Death_By_Farts
August 20th, 2012
Obama is done…R and R will win in an epic landslide.
Not even mass voter fraud will be enough to pull Obama across the finish line.
Maudie N Mandeville
August 20th, 2012
@Death_By_Farts: OK, maybe mass voter fraud.
Maudie N Mandeville
August 20th, 2012
“received with elation by both sides”. Just a stupid statement. I stopped reading right there.
What were dems supposed to do? Come out “OMG, It’s Ryan!!”?
dba...vagabond trader
August 20th, 2012
I’ll vote for the R R team. They better toe the conservative line with our money. Medicare is a touchy subject to roll out a campaign on.
Rs should get back to an unimproved economy, degraded border security and a weakened military being left to us by the Ds.
After he11care is reversed by congress, then a thorough public vetting of any entitlement and or healthcare laws brought up for vote..
Team TEA
August 21st, 2012
Death_By_Farts (hehehe), I pray you are correct on that or there will be no 2016 election. There might not even be a 2012 one, Obama and his enablers will shut those down too in order to stay in power.
I need more ammo for the riots that Obama will incite when/if he does indeed lose in that epic landslide.