Ryan to Obama: 'Leadership should come from the top’

[Geee]

The Hill:

Republicans confronted President Obama at the White House on Wednesday, accusing him of a lack of leadership during the nation’s fiscal crisis.

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said he wanted to “clear the air” over the president’s attack on his budget plan.

The most dramatic moment of the meeting came when Ryan told Obama he was wrong to characterize Republicans as turning their backs on children and senior citizens, lawmakers said.
Ryan told the president, “Leadership should come from the top,” according to Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.), who was there. Ryan also called out the president for his speech at George Washington University in April, during which he castigated the Republican budget in harsh terms while Ryan sat just a few feet away.

GOP leaders said Wednesday’s White House meeting, which lasted over an hour, was “frank” and “productive.”

Republicans have for weeks complained that Democrats are engaging in a coordinated “Mediscare” campaign to mischaracterize the GOP budget as turning Medicare into a voucher program for seniors. Democrats have doubled down on their critique in the days since their upset victory in a special election in upstate New York, where even Republicans acknowledged the Medicare issue played a role.

“As far as Medicare is concerned, we wanted to make sure the president understood the facts about our proposal so he doesn’t continue to mischaracterize it. We just needed to clear the air,” Ryan told reporters at the Capitol. He did not describe his exchange with Obama in detail.

[clearvision]

Obama seems afraid to take a stand on anything and just passes the buck to the Senate leadership at this point.

[pollyannaish]

I have to say that I absolutely LOVE Paul Ryan. I believe at this point he is one of the few in Washington actually trying to govern responsibly instead of wandering around sending young co-ed photos of himself in his skivvies.

 

He is willing to call things by their right names, and actually "speak truth to power" as it is necessary. He doesn't seem blinded or in awe of powerful titles, and expects to see those WITH them use them for good.

 

We need a LOT more like him.