Paul Ryan tackles one of GOP’s biggest post-election problems
For the second time in two elections, an older Republican presidential nominee selected a younger running mate with the intent of injecting some energy into his campaign. Then, shortly afterward, his campaign staff began working to muzzle that younger running mate.
That’s about as close as you’ll get to putting Paul Ryan and Sarah Palin in the same sentence — although, like Palin, Ryan seems intent on using his boost in national profile to grab a big role in the national debate moving forward, likely to position himself for a future run at the top of the ticket.
I give Ryan better odds at staying in that conversation all the way until the next election than Palin did after 2008 (although she certainly remained relevant through the 2010 midterms and was a central figure in the tea party’s rise to prominence). If he does, it will be because he seems to have a keen understanding of one of the GOP’s key problems moving forward from the election he helped fight. I’m talking about its reputation as a party that only cares about wealthy Americans.
Ryan reportedly wanted to broaden the GOP’s message during the presidential campaign but was shot down by Romney campaign advisers who said the party does not “test well on” issues like poverty. Well, of course: It’s hard to “test well on” an issue you spend zero time addressing. The only concession he got from the campaign was to give a single speech, about two weeks before Election Day in Cleveland, that was well-received but was too little, too late to move the needle for the campaign.
Now that those advisers aren’t holding him back any longer, Ryan seems intent on spending some time developing this theme on his own. His speech last night to the Jack Kemp Foundation — named for another one-time creative thinker and vice presidential contender for the GOP — is worth a read in its entirety. But this is the key theme:
Just last year, total federal and state spending on means-tested programs came to more than one trillion dollars. What does that mean in practical terms? For that amount of money, you could give every poor American a check for $22,000. Instead, we spent all that money trying to fight poverty through government programs.
What do we have to show for it? Today, 46 million people are living in poverty. During the last four years, the number of people on food stamps has gone up by 15 million. Medicaid is reaching a breaking point. And one out of every four students fails to earn a high-school diploma. In our major cities, half of our kids don’t graduate. Half.
When Lyndon Johnson launched the War on Poverty in 1964, he predicted we would eliminate poverty in 35 to 50 years. Here we are, 48 years later, and poverty is winning. We deserve better.
Ryan framed the issue in two ways that ought to be fertile political ground for Republicans: as the policy heir to the successful welfare reform of the 1990s, and with education as a centerpiece. Once upon a time, welfare reform was a prominent — and winning — social issue for conservatives. As I’ve argued before, education reform should be one for the right going forward (there are indications some Republicans understand this).
Importantly, Ryan does not frame the issue only as a matter of saving money. As I’ve also argued, Republicans will be more successful if they can talk about their ideas both as a matter of good fiscal stewardship and as a way to improve matters for beneficiaries of government programs. Welfare reform was undoubtedly good for both the nation’s finances and those who were moved off welfare rolls and onto payrolls. The GOP should make the case that the same is true for sensible changes to anti-poverty programs and education — as well as health-care programs, pensions, mass transit, etc.
Lest this post be viewed as a Paul Ryan love-fest, let me note that Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida (who also spoke to the Jack Kemp Foundation last night) and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal are two other likely 2016 contenders who are sounding similar notes.
The shame of the campaign Mitt Romney ran — aside from the fact he lost, of course — is that it didn’t do much to put conservative arguments and values in a better position moving forward. Perhaps Ryan can salvage some potential from the campaign on his own.
(H/t to the Future of Capitalism blog for pointing out the Ryan and Rubio speeches.)
– By Kyle Wingfield
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240 comments Add your comment
Lt Dan
December 5th, 2012
3:02 pm
Lil’ Barry:
Sounds sort of like trial by combat. God will pick the winner and they will triumph?
I learned early you can be in the right, but if the other guy has a better right-hook, fight’s over.
Sailfish
December 5th, 2012
3:02 pm
Ryan seems like a likeable enough man, the problem is republican ideology and the brand they are selling. If you really pick apart his budget plan all it really does is increase the debt and cut taxes for the wealthy again, cut medicare up into vouchers and like every good republican wants to trade out social security to 401k’s. So-
Ryan keeps tryin,
the people ain’t buyin
all of the lyin
leaves boehner cryin
cons? fryin!
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
December 5th, 2012
3:02 pm
Aqua, when people ask me to go do their research for them I normally just think “riiiiight” and go about my typing.
Cherokee
December 5th, 2012
3:05 pm
It’s a tragedy that folks like Obama who want to actually solve big problems are either mocked, disparaged, or ignored. You can’t solve a problem like the vast gulf between the very wealthy and the rest of us unless you admit it’s a problem, and the moocher class that voted for Romney will never acknowledge that’s a problem.
There, fixed it for you Barry.
Lt Dan
December 5th, 2012
3:05 pm
Finn:
I did not call anyone stupid, just that it was unfortunate they are not involved.
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
3:10 pm
JDW @ 2:47: You’re missing, or obfuscating, the point. The point is that all these means-tested programs were created to fight poverty. Yet, we spend more than it would take to eliminate poverty. Pick your reason: too much lost in the bureaucracy, too much redundancy, too much going to people who aren’t impoverished, whatever. But the fact remains: The money we spend in the name of helping the poor is enough to ensure that no one is poor. Now, would everyone be in the middle class after this check-cutting? No; by definition, not everyone is in the *middle* class at the same time. But framing the debate this way is wise, because it allows us to get past the “we need to spend more money!” claim and look at the real reasons some people aren’t upwardly mobile on their own.
Lt Dan
December 5th, 2012
3:11 pm
emo,
My mistake, I’m sorry.
As to the primary candidates, I personally felt Romney had the better resume for the job and that his policical philosophy was more in tune to mine than the other guy.
So in the end, P.C. got the most votes and won the election.
He won, but I still feel the better man lost, and in life that happens.
I’ll deal with it, but I will not accept he is correct in his political\economic philosophy.
And life goes on.
Tom
December 5th, 2012
3:18 pm
Please please, Lt Dan, tell us all about your Magic Legs.
Lt Dan
December 5th, 2012
3:19 pm
To all:
Have to go now. Be good and have a good day.
I would really like to converse with different people about the role of government (Fed, state, local).
I think a lot of the differences we have come from different ideas on that topic.
AU Liberal in ATL
December 5th, 2012
3:23 pm
Oh please. Paul Ryan IS one of the GOP’s biggest pre and post election problems. The only way he can fix that is by going away.
JDW
December 5th, 2012
3:23 pm
@Kyle, I disagree that this is an appropriate way to frame the issue. I think that he is going to create another false narrative that is similar to the 47% business.
Eradicating poverty is part and parcel of the old saying…if you give a man a fish he eats today if you teach him to fish he eats forever. We have completely neglected the process of giving people the tools and knowledge to support themselves. But we can’t solve that problem by redirecting the monies that allow them to survive today. At its root that is where he is heading with this argument.
Lt Dan
December 5th, 2012
3:26 pm
Tom,
I was nick-named Lt Dan by my troops in Fallujah. Was knocked on my butt by a booby-trap and drug out of the room by LCPL Forrest Gunn. I didn’t get it until they made me watch a clip from the Forrest Gump movie.
(I did not curse or fire my side-arm at the enemy, I was simply seeing stars)
The nick name has just stuck with me.
Tom
December 5th, 2012
3:30 pm
Riiiiight, Lt Dan. Were you also the pilot of the Enola Gay? Did you lead the charge up San Juan Hill? What did Gen. Lee say when he surrendered his sword to you at Appomattox Court House that April Day so long ago?
bluto
December 5th, 2012
3:37 pm
It’ll give him a chance to go thru puberty, so he’s got that going for him.
emo
December 5th, 2012
3:39 pm
Lt Dan, even though we disagree politically, I’ve enjoyed corresponding with you since you make sense, rather than just calling names. Have a good day. And keep your powder dry.
Pizzaman
December 5th, 2012
3:39 pm
I get two Government checks. 52 years paying into social security and 27 years service with the Navy. Got a problem with that!
Hopeful
December 5th, 2012
3:43 pm
Lt. Dan your my hero
Hopeful
December 5th, 2012
3:46 pm
I hated paying taxes money you’ve got in cd and money market in the banks I think once taxed is enough
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
December 5th, 2012
3:47 pm
Oh yeah, Dekalb County, bastion of independence and citadel of personal responsibility, went all in for Romney, uh-huh, sure thing.
Do these libs ever tire of spinning up these moonbat fantasies of theirs?
CC
December 5th, 2012
3:49 pm
“Obozo has a big ol’ slop bucket, and he isn’t afraid to use it.”
. . . and all the little piggies come runnin’!
Glenn
December 5th, 2012
3:50 pm
There you go again using the B term . This time ” broaden ” instead of ” broad message ” . The republicans can’t get to broad without your talking heads bashing you as a sellout . Ya know the one’s that thought mentioning the 47% of freeloaders was a good idea . Do you really want to see Paul Ryan have to apologies to Sean Hannity or Rush Limbaugh ….or Lil Barry Bailout : )
When your partymembers can safely believe in global warming or creation with out being eaten by his/her own then throw the B term out there .
carlosgvv
December 5th, 2012
3:54 pm
Paul Ryan co-sponsored a bill to make fertilized eggs persons, with full human rights.
You’re right about putting Ryan and Palin in the same sentence. Compared to Ryan, Palin is a paragon of stability and common sense.
Glenn
December 5th, 2012
3:55 pm
sorry meant evolution but i think you get the gist . The republican message is narrow . To broaden it would be dishonest . You are not a buffet style party . Your plate is set .
Pizzaman
December 5th, 2012
3:55 pm
I also pay about 20% income tax combined on my Military and SS retirement pay. So YES I resent Mitt’s 47% class and his only having to pay 13%. The COLA’s over the last several years haven’t even kept up with the increases in Medicare premiums. I can’t imagine how folks on SS only are able to survive. The Republicans could help but won’t raise taxes. Unless taxes are raised and fair and spending is carefully cut nothing will happen. Republicans need a soul!
Hopeful
December 5th, 2012
3:58 pm
What about tricare for our boys and girls in the Military Obama’s mess with that
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:01 pm
My dad gets a check from the government too.
He spent 8 years in the Air Force and tore his knee up pretty badly while he was in there.
He has no cartilage left in one of this knees.
I think he gets in the neighborhood of 150 bucks a month for it.
Another moocher I guess.
Hopeful
December 5th, 2012
4:04 pm
What about sending prisoners to war they like to kill????
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
4:05 pm
JDW @ 3:23: Did you read the whole speech? Because redirecting the funds is not the theme of the speech — the failure of all those funds to achieve the goal, and the need to find new approaches to the problem, is the theme.
Reality
December 5th, 2012
4:06 pm
@Kyle Wingfield….
LOL! You think that THIS is a big problem for the GOP? There are much much bigger problems than this. The fact that you identify this as a ‘big problem’ really shows how out-of-touch you are!
How about as a big problem…. the fact that the Tea Party and their extreme views are running the show for the republicans. Republicans will never be able to win the ‘big’ elections when the platform is so far out on a limb.
How about as a big problem…. the fact that the republican party is so driven by the wealthy that the platform is out of touch with middle American? For republicans, they will proclaim whatever the wealth donors want them to proclaim leaving out middle America.
How about as a big problem…. the fact that the demographics of America is changing while the republican party is old white men in suits? Just look at the convention and compare to the Democrat convention to see what I mean. The comparison is shocking. Republicans have just got to embrace more diversity.
But none of these compare to the young VP candidate problem? Wow. No wonder the republican party is running down the path leading downhill.
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
4:07 pm
Politico @ 2:26: Did you see the origin of that discussion? JamVet claimed Ryan’s Medicare plan cost Romney Florida. I was pointing out evidence that that claim is wrong.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
December 5th, 2012
4:14 pm
Reality, here’s another big problem:
Swearing an oath (Norquist) that trumps the oath sworn to for taking office to serve the country.
The “problems” run pretty deep.
Jeffrey
December 5th, 2012
4:18 pm
Matt Ryan will still be around and important. Paul Ryan got put in a duffel bag 2 1/2 months ago. If Paul Ryan can really wriggle out of the bag and be an anti palin I for one would be shocked. Jindal and Rubio are getting a lot of the same sound bites lately, are these the intelligent people we have been waiting for? Time will tell. My guess is if any of them were in the primary a year ago they would’ve followed the other sheep.
Alter Ego
December 5th, 2012
4:19 pm
One would think attempting to address the fiscal issues presenting the country *would* be in it’s best interest…
JDW
December 5th, 2012
4:20 pm
@Kyle…I did and to me the tone was very much the same old stuff packaged in a bit of an upgraded wapper…for example…
New wrapper….”When our neighbors are struggling, we look out for one another.”
SOS…”We do that best through our families and communities – and our party must stand for making them stronger.”
New wrapper…”And there’s a consensus in this country about our obligations to the most vulnerable. Those obligations are beyond dispute.”
SOS…”The real debate is how best we can meet them. It’s whether they are better met by private groups or by government – by voluntary action or by government action.”
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:25 pm
Did you see the origin of that discussion? JamVet claimed Ryan’s Medicare plan cost Romney Florida. I was pointing out evidence that that claim is wrong.
Id say it did cost him Florida. Id like to see how big the blue hair crowd went for the Republican in previous elections.
It maybe that Romney didn’t win the blue hairs by enough votes to overcome the younger vote which is breaking dramatically toward the progressives who believe in things like Climate Change and Science and that rape isn’t Gods will.
JamVet
December 5th, 2012
4:26 pm
Kyle, Fox News’ exit poll is interesting but not conclusive.
Romney lost Florida by 74,000 votes.
Isn’t it possible that that many people or more took exception with the insane Medicare privatization plan and did not vote for Romney?
Politico
December 5th, 2012
4:29 pm
Kyle
I was parlaying off those comments and previous comments I believe you and others mentioned about if this or that had gone this way in terms of the vote…
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
4:37 pm
JamVet @ 4:26: Well, it’s a helluva lot more conclusive than “Isn’t it possible…”
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
4:39 pm
JDW @ 4:20: I suppose you think the GOP should go the Groucho Marx route: “These are my principles. If you don’t like them, I have others.”
Far better to try to persuade people who traditionally haven’t voted for you that your principles can work for them, too.
Kyle Wingfield
December 5th, 2012
4:40 pm
Politico @ 4:29: I won’t speak for the others, but my point was very narrow and specific , in response to a question.
Glenn
December 5th, 2012
4:44 pm
Good grief Kyle . And convince these people that the Earth is made in 7 days . You are trying to say the GOP needs to be a cult not a party .
Sick of Progs
December 5th, 2012
4:46 pm
JamVet
December 5th, 2012
1:22 pm
Ryan was not the complete albatross that Palin was. All he did was cost Romney Florida’s 29 EC votes with his turn Medicare into a voucher program stupidity.
We will have to wait and see if he shows up on the third straight laughable slate of GOP candidates…
Laughable? How about Biden? He’s the f@#k up in the family that everyone has to be nice to at Thanksgiving. Except for the children, they’re too ill informed to base an honest assumption, like most commies.. er libs.
Sick of Progs
December 5th, 2012
4:49 pm
Tom
December 5th, 2012
3:30 pm
Riiiiight, Lt Dan. Were you also the pilot of the Enola Gay? Did you lead the charge up San Juan Hill? What did Gen. Lee say when he surrendered his sword to you at Appomattox Court House that April Day so long ago?
Should we put an UNCLE before your name?
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:51 pm
Laughable? How about Biden? He’s the f@#k up in the family that everyone has to be nice to at Thanksgiving.
Difference being the American people looked at Biden twice and said.
Its ok if he is a heartbeat away.
Palin and Ryan not so much.
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:53 pm
Riiiiight, Lt Dan. Were you also the pilot of the Enola Gay? Did you lead the charge up San Juan Hill? What did Gen. Lee say when he surrendered his sword to you at Appomattox Court House that April Day so long ago?
What unit did you serve in Progs ?
Elections Have Consequences
December 5th, 2012
4:55 pm
In 2008, Obama won with a 3 point margin in FL, but in 2012 with less than one point and 50K less total votes. Romney garnered 118K more votes than McCain, with the counties being an exact repeat, except for Volusia and Flager, which went to Romney.
If the Medicare message was why he got defeated, one would expect to see the trend reversed. The Hispanic vote provided the difference.
Sick of Progs
December 5th, 2012
4:59 pm
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:51 pm
Laughable? How about Biden? He’s the f@#k up in the family that everyone has to be nice to at Thanksgiving.
Difference being the American people looked at Biden twice and said.
Its ok if he is a heartbeat away.
Palin and Ryan not so much.
Just shows how too stupid libs are to realize a turd when they see one. In fact, if I took a spectacular life like dump and put a “D” in front of its name and ran it for V.P., you commies would roll around in it and claim it was hot chocolate.
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:59 pm
Just shows how too stupid libs are to realize a turd when they see one. In fact, if I took a spectacular life like dump and put a “D” in front of its name and ran it for V.P., you commies would roll around in it and claim it was hot chocolate.
What unit was that again ?
Sick of Progs
December 5th, 2012
5:01 pm
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
December 5th, 2012
4:53 pm
Riiiiight, Lt Dan. Were you also the pilot of the Enola Gay? Did you lead the charge up San Juan Hill? What did Gen. Lee say when he surrendered his sword to you at Appomattox Court House that April Day so long ago?
What unit did you serve in Progs ?
You questioning another’s service record? Why don’t you make fun of JamVet and ask him the same questions a hole? Nope can’t, your political similarities come before questioning his service? Scary
Will
December 5th, 2012
5:05 pm
Paul Ryan pulled off one of the most incredible tricks for any VP candidate in American history.
If you recall, Ryan was selected, in part, because the preferred candidate, Portman of Ohio, was perceived as too timid and, at the time, Ohio was considered a lost cause.
So how did Ryan do? The ticket lost his state – not very unusual as that has often happened in presidential elections. He lost his congressional district to the Obama/Biden ticket. He lost his county to the Obama/Ryan ticket. Wait, it gets more incredible. He lost the nearest township to his residence AND FINALLY, HIS NEIGHBORS VOTED FOR THE OBAMA/BIDEN TICKET!!!!