Ryan Rocks Republicans

[Geee]

American Spectator:

As Congressman Paul Ryan (R-WI) closed out the second night of the 2012 Republican Convention in the biggest speech of his life, he at first seemed slightly (and understandably) nervous. That lasted about sixty seconds, as the vice-president-in-waiting delivered remarks that became steadily more forceful and confident and left my wife, a relatively new citizen of the United States, saying "this guy should be running for president."

 

(Ryan speech transcript and audio here; video here in parts 1, 2, 3)

 

Ryan's 35-minute remarks, which ended with Republicans rowdily cheering the party's newest -- and perhaps only -- "rock star," spoke of optimism for the future (calling on the memory of happy warrior Jack Kemp), of the damage to the economy and the fundamental nature of our republic caused by Barack Obama, of entitlement reform, of his family and upbringing, and (briefly) of faith and religion, all while conveying a combination of youth and earnestness that the Obama/Biden team cannot hope to match.

 

Clearly savoring the veep's role as attack dog, much of Paul Ryan's speech was aimed at President Barack Obama, and particularly at the president's abysmal record:

 

"I have never seen opponents so silent about their record or so desperate to keep their power… Their moment came and went... fear and division is all they've got left. With all their attack ads, the president is just throwing away money, and he's pretty experienced at that."

And this was the gentle warm-up.

Ryan spoke of the stimulus: "[it] cost $831 billion, the largest one-time expenditure ever by our federal govt. It went to companies like Solyndra, with their gold-plated connections, subsidized jobs, and make-believe markets. You, the American people… were cut out of the deal. That money wasn't just spent and wasted; it was borrowed, spent, and wasted. "

[Geee]

Electrified RNC: ‘We Can Do This’

It took the second day of the Republican convention in Tampa for the fireworks to go off. Condoleezza Rice got a rise from the crowd, and Paul Ryan brought down the house. There were a number of themes, but the one that seemed most prevalent was that Romney and Ryan can win. This produced elation from the political right and left progressives noticeably shaken.

The night began with a peace offering to the convention’s numerous Ron Paul supporters in the form of a short Ron Paul video, lauding the longtime U.S. Senator, soon to be followed by a speech by Paul’s son, Rand. Paul supporters have been upset due to a disagreement with the Republican Party over the presidential nomination process.

Rand Paul’s speech included a number of issues, first of which was President Obama’s health care law. Paul stated that, after the Supreme Court ruling, “I still think it’s unconstitutional… The whole damn thing is still unconstitutional.” He mentioned the “You didn’t build that” line that was the tag line of the previous night’s speeches and which was peppered throughout this second night. As well, he made a number of veiled references to his opposition of the Patriot Act, which appeared out of place at this convention but was red meat for his dad’s followers. “We should never trade our liberty for any promise of security,” he stated to large applause.

 

It seemed appropriate that, right after Rand Paul, a video presentation was shown featuring President George W. Bush along with a reference to the 9/11 attacks spoken by former First Lady Laura Bush.

Senator John McCain excoriated President Obama on actions regarding defense and foreign policy. He took issue with the Obama administration’s treatment of Israel (“a nation under existential threat”), Russia and China policy, the leaking of military secrets, and massive cuts to America’s defense. He stated that the President “missed an opportunity” regarding Iran and failed to protect Syrians from the Assad government, which he described as a “savage and unfair fight.” McCain spoke with the toughness that many consider was lacking in his personal run for President in 2008.

 

http://frontpagemag.com/2012/joe-kaufman/electrified-rnc-we-can-do-this/

[Geee]

RYAN: PROUD TO ACCEPT THE CALLING OF MY GENERATION

 

TAMPA, Fla. — The standing ovation and rousing welcome Paul Ryan was given Wednesday night following the “warmup” from New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez surprised no one on the convention floor. Since he was tapped to be Mitt Romney’s vice presidential candidate, the 42-year-old Wisconsin congressman has been regarded as nothing less than his party’s “superstar” — one who has made Republicans nationwide the most excited they have been all year about unseating Barack Obama in November.

Wednesday night in Tampa, they came together and showed it.

With one speech, Paul Ryan invoked images of the role he would play in the weeks ahead: visionary orator, campaign “attack dog,” and — without argument — a policy-player in what he repeatedly called “a Romney-Ryan administration.”

Like John F. Kennedy and the man he called “the great Jack Kemp,” Ryan invoked his youth. He was proud, he said, to “accept the calling of my generation” and to help lead the charge to provide “opportunity for the young and security for the old.”

In drawing repeated cheers from his audience, Ryan also demonstrated he can handle the traditional vice presidential role of attack dog.

“After four years of getting the run-around, America is ready for the turnaround,” he declared, adding that the candidate to do it “is Gov. Mitt Romney.”

“I have never seen opponents so silent about their record and so desperate to keep their power,” said Ryan. “Their moment has come and went.”

Much of Ryan’s remarks focused on a spirited defense of his controversial plan to save Medicare, and contrasted it with what he charged was the biggest threat to Medicare: “Obamacare.” The congressman branded the health care plan Republicans so hate as one of “rules, taxes, fees, and fines that have no place in a free country.”

 

http://www.humanevents.com/2012/08/29/ryan-proud-to-accept-the-calling-of-my-generation/

[Geee]

Paul Ryan: The Happy Warrior

Tampa, Fla. — The official line is that Paul Ryan spent two weeks preparing for his speech at the Republican National Convention. In the beginning, there were late-night chats about the theme with his speechwriters, John McConnell and Matthew Scully. Later came the practice sessions at a Holiday Inn Express in his hometown of Janesville, Wis., and in the final days, there were frantic editing sessions aboard the campaign plane and inside the Marriott hotel near the Tampa Bay Times Forum.

But according to sources close to him, Ryan rarely sweated the preparation, even though his Wednesday-night appearance before the cheering throngs of Republican delegates was, in a sense, his national introduction. To the 42-year-old congressman, who was elected to the House in 1998, the speech was always a continuation of an argument he has made since he came to Washington, two decades ago, to write speeches for his mentor, Jack Kemp, the late supply-side Congressman.

Ryan has accomplished much since he was a twentysomething aide, and his adherence to conservative principles is, evidently, as strong as ever. He took care to cite Kemp tonight, in the biggest speech of his political career, to send a message about who Paul Ryan is as a thinker — to go beyond the anecdotes about his days flipping burgers at McDonald’s or his recent efforts as chairman of the House Budget Committee.

 

“As with Kemp, Paul has always been a happy warrior, and he remains a happy warrior,” says Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a former Congressional Budget Office director. “Democrats try to portray him as the austerity king, but he is a champion for growth.”

Standing at the podium, Ryan ably weaved his biography and his political philosophy into a celebration of economic freedom and an articulation of the GOP ticket’s brand, which is a combination of competency and fiscal courage. “My dad used to say to me, ‘Son, you have a choice. You can be part of the problem or you can be part of the solution,’” Ryan said. “Mitt Romney and I have made ours: Before the math and the momentum overwhelm us all, we are going to solve this nation’s economic problems.”

 

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/315400/paul-ryan-happy-warrior-robert-costa

[Geee]

Ryan says ticket won’t ‘duck the tough issues,’ will repeal Obamacare

TAMPA, Fla. — Capping his meteoric rise to the heights of the Republican Party, Paul Ryan accepted the party’s vice presidential nomination Wednesday, saying he considered it “a calling” at a time when the country needs to make tough decisions — and pledging that he and Mitt Romney won’t shirk from them.

Mr. Ryan’s speech capped off an evening that saw the Republicans try to ease Rep. Ron Paul off the political stage, and saw the party pay tribute to its living former presidents, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.

But Mr. Ryan’s address, which delivered budget-cutting marching orders to an eager and ever more rightward-leaning GOP, served as what he called a “clean break” from both President Obama and from the most recent Bush administration, when the Republicans deepened deficits and enacted a new entitlement program.

“You are entitled to the clearest possible choice,” Mr. Ryan told voters. “So here is our pledge. We will not duck the tough issues, we will lead. We will not spend four years blaming others, we will take responsibility. We will not try to replace our founding principles, we will reapply our founding principles.”

It was the biggest stage yet for the 42-year-old Wisconsin congressman, who cut his teeth on deep policy debates but now becomes the Republican Party’s chief cheerleader for presidential nominee Mr. Romney, and its chief attack-dog in the battle against Mr. Obama.

On that score, he fired off a series of one-liners, including mocking Mr. Obama’s 2008 appeal to young voters.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/aug/29/ryan-vows-health-care-repeal-fight-just-beginning/

[Draggingtree]

Paul Ryan’s Horrible Janesville ‘Lie’: Accurately Quoting the President and Recounting Actual Events

 

By: Jeff Emanuel (Diary) | August 30th at 11:30 AM | 2

 

Several of the statements made in Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan’s RNC address Wednesday night have triggered strong reactions from the Obama campaign and its surrogates throughout the media. One of the biggest points of contention is Ryan’s anecdote about a GM plant in his hometown of

Janesville, Wisconsin, which closed just months after being visited by then-candidate Barack Obama.

Obama campaign manager Jim Messina responded to the story by accusing Ryan of “dishonestly attack[ing] Barack Obama for the closing of a GM plant in his hometown of Janesville, Wisconsin — a plant that closed in December 2008 under George W. Bush,” while some journalists and media “fact-checkers” have written their own context into Ryan’s remarks in order to claim them false.

Let’s look at exactly what Obama said, what Ryan said, and then at what happened.

[Draggingtree]

Big Boy (and Girl) Night

 

By Cal Thomas · August 30, 2012

TAMPA, Fla. -- The delayed opening of the Republican National Convention worked to the advantage of the GOP by both heightening anticipation and forcing the elimination of extraneous speakers, which there are always too many of at these things.

Ann Romney kicked off her primetime address wearing a bright red dress, Ronald Reagan's favorite color and one occasionally worn by his wife, Nancy. Ann Romney immediately addressed one of the main criticisms Democrats have leveled against her husband: that he's an out-of-touch rich guy who doesn't understand the struggles of the middle class and the poor.

Like many other convention speakers who referenced the convention's "We Built It" theme, Ann Romney noted that neither she, nor her husband, nor their parents started out successful. Of her marriage, she said, read more http://patriotpost.us/opinion/14574