Paul Ryan is an excellent choice for Vice President!

[longview]

We cannot talk about one without consideration of the other. Is not the entire point of balancing the current budget deficit to stop the growing debt and begin paying it off?

The debt is cycled through every budget cycle, the last official reported amount was $454,015 billion for 2011.
That amount is to pay off matured bonds.
Once we fix our income vs outlay issue,(the deficit), the Debt will take care of itself,
and be paid off as the bonds mature.
Some of those bonds were issues at an APR of .7%, and so would take over 100 years to mature.
It is my understanding that the bonds get paid before anything else.

 

[JRog]

Ryan's plan eliminates all taxes on capital gains, interest and dividends. I'm pretty sure those benefit the rich far more than the middle class and poor...

and if you think that a majority of the population know what marxism is, you're sadly mistaken...

Also, favorable tax treatment for "job creators" is not free market capitalism, and ballooning defense spending and legislation on female reproductive rights is not "small government". Sounds like the republican ticket is selling a false promise and have managed to redefine "free market" and "small government" in the minds of their base.

 

[rocket88]

It's always fun to watch these obvious partisan slingfest threads. Especially when it starts by cheerleading for your side in the first post.

From my perspective, Ryan was a good choice for Romney. Shores up the right without having to go full on crazy, has experience, etc. The only thing wrong with the choice is that Ryan is a "rising star" who probably had Presidential ambitions of his own. He now has little hope of becoming the President unless Romney croaks (assuming they win).

 

[JRog]

The debt is cycled through every budget cycle, the last official reported amount was $454,015 billion for 2011.
That amount is to pay off matured bonds.
Once we fix our income vs outlay issue,(the deficit), the Debt will take care of itself,
and be paid off as the bonds mature.
Some of those bonds were issues at an APR of .7%, and so would take over 100 years to mature.
It is my understanding that the bonds get paid before anything else.

I find it ironic that 20% (about $3.0 trillion) of our national debt is owed to the social security and medicare funds, and that these funds are now being scapegoated for the federal budget problem.

Federal Debt Basics

Sooo....they want to borrow money for wars and tax cuts, which was withheld from employee wages for the purpose of social security and medicare benefits, not pay it back, and then blame these programs for their budget shortfalls....

Okay...:doh

 

[TheNextEra]

Wrong, this election is a referendum on failure, Obama's failure. Unless of course you approve of 8+% unemployment for over 42 months, a GDP of 1.5%, and raising our national debt by 6 trillion in just four yrs. Under Obama you will enjoy worse numbers for the next 4 yrs as he has run out of ideas to do anything except the same failed policies.

I don't approve of it, but then again I'm smart enough to realize ONE MAN cannot do those things. Shame some Contards aren't.

 

[disneydude]

You are correct in the OP...Ryan is the perfect choice FOR DEMOCRATS!!!!

Why are all the democrats happy and most Republicans are slapping their heads and saying WTF was he thinking?

If people didn't think that Romney represented only the interests of the 1% and is willing to throw the middle class and seniors under the bus.....the selection of Ryan certainly highlights it dramatically.

 

[Somerville]

It's always fun to watch these obvious partisan slingfest threads. Especially when it starts by cheerleading for your side in the first post.

From my perspective, Ryan was a good choice for Romney. Shores up the right without having to go full on crazy, has experience, etc. The only thing wrong with the choice is that Ryan is a "rising star" who probably had Presidential ambitions of his own. He now has little hope of becoming the President unless Romney croaks (assuming they win).

Nate Silver of FiveThirtyEight blog doesn't agree with your assessment of Mr Ryan

Paul Ryan Is The Most Extreme VP Candidate In More Than A Century

Basically, Silver concludes that Ryan was a risky choice and that Romney would not have made such a risky pick unless he thought he was down in the race and therefore had little to lose.

Why is Ryan such a risky pick?

Because "Politics 101," Silver says, dictates that VP candidates that are closest to the center, ideologically speaking, give the Presidential candidate the best chance of winning.

And Ryan is the most extreme VP candidate since at least 1900, Silver says—on either side of the aisle.

"experience"??

Mitt Romney’s constitutional amendment would bar Paul Ryan from the presidency

Three years ago, Mitt Romney proposed a constitutional amendment that would say “the president has to spend three years working in business before he becomes president of the United States. Then he or she would understand that the policies they are putting into place have to encourage small business to grow.”

As Andrew Kaczsynski notes, that provision would disqualify Paul Ryan, who has spent his life working for the government, first as a congressional staffer and then as a congressman.

Does anyone else find it a bit strange that a man who has done nothing but work in government positions since university is trying so hard to take away the possibility of others also working for the government?

 

[TheNextEra]

You are correct in the OP...Ryan is the perfect choice FOR DEMOCRATS!!!!

Why are all the democrats happy and most Republicans are slapping their heads and saying WTF was he thinking?

If people didn't think that Romney represented only the interests of the 1% and is willing to throw the middle class and seniors under the bus.....the selection of Ryan certainly highlights it dramatically.

Actually I think Ryan was the best choice for Republicans in a losing situation. Had Romney chosen a "safe" candidate he would never energize the base. The whole point of Ryan is to energize the base in a last ditch effort to hope more of the energized base vote for Romney over the de-energized folks for Obama. It's the smartest move Romney could have made, but I still think Romney is going to lose.

 

[Bobcat]

Actually I think Ryan was the best choice for Republicans in a losing situation. Had Romney chosen a "safe" candidate he would never energize the base. The whole point of Ryan is to energize the base in a last ditch effort to hope more of the energized base vote for Romney over the de-energized folks for Obama. It's the smartest move Romney could have made, but I still think Romney is going to lose.

dream on, Obama wil follow the lead of jimmy carter, incompetence equals one term.

 

[disneydude]

Actually I think Ryan was the best choice for Republicans in a losing situation. Had Romney chosen a "safe" candidate he would never energize the base. The whole point of Ryan is to energize the base in a last ditch effort to hope more of the energized base vote for Romney over the de-energized folks for Obama. It's the smartest move Romney could have made, but I still think Romney is going to lose.

Could be. Romney's internal polls must have told him that he was going to lose big unless he did something drastic to bring out the people that should have been coming out for him anyway. And maybe it was the smartest choice he had....but it comes with some huge negatives for him.

 

[disneydude]

dream on, Obama wil follow the lead of jimmy carter, incompetence equals one term.

If that were the case, GWB wouldn't have served any....the reality is....Romney is another Dole/Dukakis/Kerry......a bad candidate thrown to the lions and waiting for the next election cycle.

 

[JRog]

Does anyone else find it a bit strange that a man who has done nothing but work in government positions since university is trying so hard to take away the possibility of others also working for the government?

It is also strange that a man who has based his policies on the work of Ayn Rand would be Roman Catholic, since the philosophy of Rand was athiest in nature.

 

[TheNextEra]

dream on, Obama wil follow the lead of jimmy carter, incompetence equals one term.

Oh trust me it's no dream, no matter if Romney wins or Obama wins, this country is going to go further down the rabbit hole to hell.

But hey, you keep believing the "Hope and Change" that you think Romney is going to bring. Fact is ONE MAN isn't at fault for America's woes. It's been decades in the making by past presidents and congress members.

 

[Porchev]

It's always fun to watch these obvious partisan slingfest threads. Especially when it starts by cheerleading for your side in the first post.

From my perspective, Ryan was a good choice for Romney. Shores up the right without having to go full on crazy, has experience, etc. The only thing wrong with the choice is that Ryan is a "rising star" who probably had Presidential ambitions of his own. He now has little hope of becoming the President unless Romney croaks (assuming they win).

Ryan will be in a perfect position to run for President in 2020 after Romney's second term. :2razz:

 

[Ikari]

dream on, Obama wil follow the lead of jimmy carter, incompetence equals one term.

Naw, Bush got 2 terms and he was as incompetent as a coked up rhesus monkey.

 

[Arbo]

What does that have to do with the fact that we payed this guy for 13yrs and only two of his bills were passed into law? And did you see the bills?

Do you realize how few of our elected legislators have any of 'their bills' passed?

You metric is meaningless. If you want to judge someone, look at what they co-sponsored, sponsored, and voted 'Aye' for.

 

[Porchev]

You are correct in the OP...Ryan is the perfect choice FOR DEMOCRATS!!!!

.

So who would have been better for the Republicans? Portman, who was part of the George W. Bush administration? Pawlenty, who is like Mr. Rogers and he had a horrible presidential campaign? Rubio, who is absolutely great, but with only 2 years in the Senate perhaps that is a bit inexperienced and Obama is inexperienced and look at the disaster that has been.

 

[NateNY3]

Do you realize how few of our elected legislators have any of 'their bills' passed?

You metric is meaningless. If you want to judge someone, look at what they co-sponsored, sponsored, and voted 'Aye' for.

I love when people make statements as facts....you really should have put IMO at the beginning...

I think a guy who has been there 13yrs and could only get these 2 meaningless bills passed means he has been nothing short of an empty suit and I should sue him to get my tax dollars back..I'm sure he's made a fortune since he's been there on insider trading like the rest of them...

If that's par for the course, get rid of every god damned one of them!!!

 

[hazlnut]

Excellent for Obama's re-electon campaign.

Excellent in terms of a VP debate that resembles a USC football game from 2004-2007.

 

[Arbo]

I love when people make statements as facts....

Look, I don't care if you want to lead a life of delusion... but you should take a look at all the other's that have been in office that long, and see how many of 'their bills' have passed as well.

But perhaps looking for the truth just simply isn't what you want.

 

[NateNY3]

Look, I don't care if you want to lead a life of delusion... but you should take a look at all the other's that have been in office that long, and see how many of 'their bills' have passed as well.

But perhaps looking for the truth just simply isn't what you want.

Ahhh, so it's ok since they're all doing it...gotcha!

 

[Arbo]

Ahhh, so it's ok since they're all doing it...gotcha!

Wow, so you don't need a string, but rather just to have you falsehoods questioned. (to spin that is)

Of course nobody said as you are suggesting. But to put it in plain english for you: Attacking him as 'bad' for having as bad of a 'my bills' record as he has, when so many others are the same (or worse), is meaningless in terms of criticism of him. It is a FAIL on your part.

 

[NateNY3]

Wow, so you don't need a string, but rather just to have you falsehoods questioned. (to spin that is)

Of course nobody said as you are suggesting. But to put it in plain english for you: Attacking him as 'bad' for having as bad of a 'my bills' record as he has, when so many others are the same (or worse), is meaningless in terms of criticism of him. It is a FAIL on your part.

You forgot IMO again...maybe you should write it down so you don't forget...

Last I checked this was a thread about Paul Ryan and his credentials to be VP. If you don't care that he has done virtually nothing on HIS OWN in 13 yrs, that's totally fine by me. That is YOUR choice. To sit there and tell me what I should think of his ineptitude, is really not your place.

 

[johnny_rebson]

I'm not worried. I just hope you realize that this election is a referendum on the Teaparty, the Ryan budget, ending Medicare or Social Security and tax cuts for the rich.

Everyday more Americans realize we can no longer afford entitlement programs like Medicare. This campaign will see many voters hop on the Ryan bandwagon.

 

[hazlnut]

Everyday more Americans realize we can no longer afford entitlement programs like Medicare. This campaign will see many voters hop on the Ryan bandwagon.

What about VA and Federal Employee programs. They're entitlements.

So is medicaid. Shall we just let them die in the streets?

And the agriculture price support programs? Has one GOP ever stated we need to look at those?