Romney Picks Ryan for VP

Hmm. Not a wonderful political choice and it appears that picking up voters or a specific state/region was not a factor. That makes it an unusual choice, much like when McCain picked Palin. But I think the reasoning is completely different here and has more to do with Mitt’s approach to governance.

To me, this is a sign that Romney will approach being President of the United States in the same manner that he approached business. He was looking for someone competent that would fit well with his economic plans. In other words, he really did look at the resumes of the potential vice presidents and hired the one he thought could do the job best. Unlike the pundits, I believe Mitt made the decision rather than having Ryan forced on him.

While I am not a big Paul Ryan fan due to suspicions about his late conversion on fiscal issues, I think the choice reflects well on Romney the man. How it reflects on Romney the candidate may be another issue entirely. I do not see Ryan being a greater aid to the campaign than Bobby Jindall, Marco Rubio, or Chris Christie. So I am watching to see if Ryan will win me over and also voters. If there were worries about the Tea Party voters not turning out, it would explain the choice – but they were a slam dunk to show up at the polls anyway.

The collective brain power of the team exceeds Obama and Biden by many gigawatts though. This is easily the smartest ticket run in my lifetime. That may may it difficult for them to connect with the voters, but since team Obama is devoted to running the dirtiest campaign since before the Civil War it is hard to tell if it will make a difference.

Will issues win this election? I would love to say they will, but the public has become very vulnerable to demagoguery so lying and making up attacks really do work. If issues were the motivator, the upcoming election would be a landslide for Romney regardless of his veep pick. Expect Medicare scare tactics and more Romney killed people libel and slander as a result.

So is it a game changer like so many are writing and saying? Not in my opinion. Excepting Portman, any of the other names bandied about would have had a bigger effect on the general election.