The One “Issue” Paul Ryan Brings Up

By on August 15, 2012 in Mitt Romney

Republicans’ new favorite talking point is that by Mitt Romney nominating Paul Ryan to be his running mate it means that it’s more likely we’ll talk about issues.

There’s only one issue Paul Ryan brings up. As someone who voted for the Iraq War, the Bush tax breaks and an unfunded Medicare Part D then proposed a budget that guts nearly everything that helps working people, he gives us the perfect opportunity to make this point:

The exact same people who blew the surplus, exploded our debt and crashed our economy are still using this crisis as an opportunity to gut our social safety net and transfer trillions more in wealth to the rich.

That’s the only issue Paul Ryan brings up that matters.

[CC image by James B. Currie]


  • Divad_Yblik

    There’s a terrific (with a bit of humor sprinkled in) analysis and take-down of Congressman Ryan in the “Fryin’ Ryan” post at “Grumbles From an Old Grouch” (grumblesfromanoldgrouch.com)

  • Thomas Gray

    I suspect they intentionally want to destroy the economy and the government in order to reverse the social gains of the last 60 years, or failing that, destroy America just so they can say “I told you so”, while simultaneously enriching their own pockets in the short term, as they don’t intend for there to be a future.

    • Upgrayedd

      Who in their right mind would want to destroy America? Who would that benefit? Honestly how would reversing the social gains of the last 60 years benefit ANYONE?
      Oh! that’s right, the satanic Republicans.

      • Hobbes83

        You can put down your weapons; your war with the Republic of Strawmen has come to a close.

        • Upgrayedd

          I didn’t even make an argument in this post. It’s a pretty straight forward question- who would benefit from America in shambles? So to say I committed a fallacy is ironically a fallacy.

          • Hobbes83

            Sure you didn’t bucko, sure you didn’t.

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RSLXRYUTH72RSHW7AC7NDDJXK4 billr

    Think about it: What party, with any common sense at all, would purposely pick a candidate who wants to dismantle SS and Medicare………while faced with polls showing 79% of voters are against it? I mean, really, how STUPID IS THAT? They’ve been trying for many, many decades to destroy the social services in this country, services which are extremely popular, despite the republican mantra of “gub’mint is bad”. People may believe their mantra, but when it comes toe to the line, they don’t want you touching their services. How long before the R party gets a clue? Will they ever? I personally doubt they ever will.

    • Upgrayedd

      http://www.usdebtclock.org/. It’s just $16 trillion, no need to cut expenses. Ever hear of something called self-reliance. It’s this crazy idea where you plan for own retirement. And the best part is, ANYONE can do it. Oh but you’d rather have the government pay you half ass checks and continue to be a sheep following your herding government. Be an individual and take responsibility for yourself and your life..

      • Hobbes83

        If only it was as easy as you make it out to be. All your are spouting are right-wing and libertarian platitudes that sound good on paper, but are utterly useless in reality. By the way, since you want to throw out numbers, here’s one for you: $5.8 Trillion. Its how much money Ryan’s votes on various Bush era policies have added to the national debt.

        • Upgrayedd

          This post my main point was that self-reliance will get you farther than the slow and inefficient cogs of government.

          You’re in for a rude awakening if your only plan is to rely on the government, guess what there are are millions of others on that ship, so step in line and enjoy your slice of pie while it’s still there.

          No matter what you say you cannot argue the simple fact that no one cares about you… more than yourself (that goes for everyone.) And if you care so much about yourself why gamble on the government getting it done when you are capable of doing it yourself.

          Also my number came with a reference… where’s yours? Actually I don’t care, let’s assume it’s true. That $5.9 trillion is still just part of a whole, a whole that currently stands at $16 trillion, which we (tax payers) are all responsible for. Funny thing is we all watched and let it happen. So we are all at blame just as much as our Representatives.

          • Hobbes83

            Why are you beating the stuffing out of that straw-man? He’s done nothing to you…

          • Upgrayedd

            If I said anything but Republicans are wrong, I’m sure you would claim straw-man. Clearly there’s no reasoning with you. I wish you the best of luck and happiness.

          • Hobbes83

            Thanks for putting words in my mouth and not actually defending your position. I guess its easier for you to play the victim then it is for you to actually advance a substantive argument to back your conclusory opinion.

  • Valeree

    So apparantly you all think there should be more big government? You honestly want the government to run healthcare? They do that well.Look at the Post Office near bankruptcy!
    Ryan does not want to dismantle ss and medicare, if you are intelligent enough you would know that. it has been taken out of contaxt as the dems seem to do on everything.
    The wealthy are the ones who run businesses and create jobs, not the government. You all seem to think earning your own money that has caused you to be one of the wealthy is a dirty word Capitalism is what makes us America!

    • http://www.facebook.com/Rimewindturtle Kevin Currier

      Contaxt? The a button isn’t anywhere close to the e button, how did you…

      In all seriousness though, Republicans are just as guilty of that as you say Democrats are, and you only need to see any of Romney’s ads which have President Obama speaking in them to find proof of it.

      Insulting people’s intelligence is no way to convince them of anything, if anything it actually worsens your case.

      You’re right, to a point: Businesses are the ones which make jobs, for the most part. But consider this. If there is no interest in buying a particular service or good, would a competent businessman make jobs towards providing that service or making those goods? Of course not, the businessman would never make a profit that way. If the people to whom the businessman would be selling do not have enough money to safely make that purchase, they effectively have no interest in buying it, except for the people with poor judgement. Essentially, the point I’m trying to make is that, while businesses make the jobs, without any customers to sell to no jobs are made.

      • http://www.facebook.com/Rimewindturtle Kevin Currier

        We are not against capitalism. We’re against Laiessez-faire capitalism, which is what most well-known Republicans seem to be pushing for. We are also against using the government to get the most assistance to the ones who need it least, in the forms of massive tax breaks and similar benefits. That’s exactly the opposite of how it should be working.

        The Government isn’t taking over healthcare, it is simply imposing regulations which makes it more affordable and thus more likely that citizens can get adequate care. That’s the difference between “I’m taking your gun, Mr. Cheney” and “You can keep your gun, Mr. Cheney, but please stop shooting your friend with it.”

    • http://eclectablog.com Eclectablog

      So apparantly you all think there should be more big government? You honestly want the government to run healthcare? They do that well.Look at the Post Office near bankruptcy! Ryan does not want to dismantle ss and medicare, if you are intelligent enough you would know that. it has been taken out ofcontaxt as the dems seem to do on everything. The wealthy are the ones who run businesses and create jobs, not the government. You all seem to think earning your own money that has caused you to be one of the wealthy is a dirty word Capitalism is what makes us America!
      Aw, geez? Really? We have to explain this AGAIN???

      Okay, pay attention:

      “So apparantly you all think there should be more big government? You honestly want the government to run healthcare? They do that well.Look at the Post Office near bankruptcy!”
      Nobody is suggesting that “government run healthcare”. We’re talking about health INSURANCE and, yes, absolutely, I want government involved. It should not be a “for profit” enterprise because that will ALWAYS mean people get screwed in favor of profits. I can’t for the life of me figure out why you would compare it to the Post Office, by the way. Why not compare it to the government program already in place that is related to health care insurance? I’m talking, of course, about Medicare. It’s one of the most efficient programs in the country and it gets high ratings by the vast majority of its users. That’s why you hear so many tea partiers saying, “Keep your hands off my Medicare” as they rant and rave about the Affordable Care Act. The Post Office? Really?
      “Ryan does not want to dismantle ss and medicare, if you are intelligent enough you would know that. it has been taken out ofcontaxt as the dems seem to do on everything.”
      I’m sorry but this is patently false. The Ryan Budget absolutely will end Medicare as we know it by turning it into a voucher program that they euphemistically call “premium support”. Their evisceration is covered in my more recent post here:http://is.gd/xQrqSB To say that they aren’t trying dismantle these programs betrays an alarming level of ignorance about their intent.
      “The wealthy are the ones who run businesses and create jobs, not the government. You all seem to think earning your own money that has caused you to be one of the wealthy is a dirty word Capitalism is what makes us America!”
      If what you say here were true, we wouldn’t be facing the economic catastrophe that we’re in now because these so-called job creators have been getting enormous tax breaks thanks to George W. Bush for YEARS! In fact, they received these tax breaks years BEFORE the recession started and still do now thatthe recovery is in progress. It’s well known that these so-called job creators are sitting on gigantic stockpiles of money and are, in fact, NOT creating jobs. They are hoarding their wealth.
      Also, you fail to make the distinction between individual tax cuts and corporate tax cuts. The cuts in question are on individuals, not the businesses that hire people and actually DO create jobs. The tax breaks would remain in place on the first $250,000 of annual income. Increased rates (less than 5%increase, by the way) don’t kick in until you are above that threshold. If you are a half-millionaire, for example, you would see the slightly increased tax rate on the second quarter million dollars you make each year. The suggestion that these super-wealthy people who are already getting monster tax breaks won’t hire unless we give them more is ludicrous and clearly proven wrong by today’s reality.
      Nice try, though. Where’d you get your talking points?Limbaugh? Hannity? Beck? Fox News? Stop me when I get the right one.

    • Upgrayedd

      Deal lord, I thank you for someone who doesn’t have their head in their ass.

      • Hobbes83

        Have you looked in the mirror lately? I think you’re projecting right now.

  • Valeree

    I know I saw the “a” after I posted. Good catch.
    To be perfectly honest I don’t like either candidate but I must stick with my party. I and 85% of Americans do not want Obamacare. This is a major concern of most people and how it will effect our current coverage. Obama just keeps spending and nothing has been done to fix the economy. He did inherit some debt but he has created more debt than any other President has. He is clueless on how to fix the economy and most people just want a good job with good benefits. He has done nothing to help that.

  • Valeree

    Wow! Eclectablog mod I can honestly say you and the rest of the people that have your beliefs are sorely mistaken by the blah blah that comes out of Obamas mouth. Good luck if he wins another 4 yrs. We will all say told you so when the economy completely falls apart and America is no longer a super power. America was founded on Capitalism and that is what it should be, not a dirty word!

  • Upgrayedd

    It’s funny how everyone on this page is against Republicans. Being partisan gets you nowhere and is illogical… Let’s play the blame game and see where that gets us. Attacking a person because of party affiliation is like attacking someone because of their religious affiliations. The bottom line is that the party identification should be the least of your concerns; it’s the candidate, their beliefs, and ability to improve our government that matter. Not to mention you’re attacking the person rather than his arguments.

    Now let’s look at this “article”, it doesn’t progress any thought whatsoever. Just by reading the first 2 sentence you can tell that the author is mocking the Republicans (I’ve already touched on why that’s not the best way to go about politics.) The next couple of sentences claims Paul Ryan only brought up “one issue that matters” then goes on and talks about what he has voted for in the past, of which only one is relevant to social programs- the unfunded Medicare Part D.

    And with no true premises to work off of the author makes the bold assertion that Paul Ryan’s budget proposal will “gut nearly everything that helps working people.” The way this sentence is worded leads you to believe that Paul Ryan is out to destroy everything that helps “working people”- which is everyone. By making Paul Ryan an enemy to “working people” you are playing on the security/needs of a group of people; which is another illogical argument. Any true article will bring forth facts and information to supplement their arguments; using persuasive jargon isn’t enough. That’s what they call suppressing evidence.

    Which leads me to the bold paragraph, which I assume is the only point that “matters.” This could be taken completely out of context. It’s one sentence. I’m proud the author has enough open-mindedness to agree with ONE SENTENCE of the opposing party. When referencing “the same people” are we to assume Ryan is talking about our government? Well theres a Democrat in office, there are Democrats in congress, there are Democrats in Legislature. Oh wait were talking about Republicans… see my first paragraph. I can agree that most of our government representatives don’t look out for the best interest of the people. Party agendas and lobbying have done away with pure representation of the people, but that’s true for both major parties. As for your social safety net and making the rich richer…. what do you think mandated health care is? It’s a social program that makes insurance companies (the rich), pharmaceutical companies (the rich), and medical supply companies (the rich) richer. While at the same time the personnel that actually take care of you (doctor, nurses, etc- the small guys) will be making less because everyone will be using insurance.

    Let’s get back on track though, Ryan wasn’t taking about health care, he was talking about Social Security (which I am to assume because the “article” makes no clarification.) Social Security is going bankrupt and when it does guess who will be paying for it? Tax payers also known as “the working people.” Google it. The evidence is overwhelming, even the governments website for Social Security recognizes that it will not work out for the long term.

    I don’t expect your logic to be flawless but I do expect at least a hint of thought or reason for your assertions. Your partisanship has closed your eyes to reality. And this 5 sentence “article” is a disgrace. Here are a few tips: 1) put some real content in your writing 2) make your conclusions based on facts 3) don’t attack the person or their affiliations and 4) think before you write. If you get nothing else from this comment I hope one thing resonates- you’re a moron.

    • Hobbes83

      Smug and condescending much? Your post is a red-herring and completely ignores the evidence out there about Republicans and their political agenda. This shit sounds like some crap a College Republican would say during a college debate; all hype, no substance.

      • Upgrayedd

        Yes, I’m smug and condescending, but that has nothing to do with my point- the author to this article posted shit.

        And you are foolish to assume I’m Republican… I’m clearly a commie bastard. Here’s a quote from my first paragraph if you didn’t catch it “party identification should be the least of your concerns; it’s the candidate, their beliefs, and ability to improve our government that matter.” I REPEAT, IT’S NOT ABOUT THE PARTY IT”S ABOUT THE PERSON. I’ll stress my point with another quote from my post “I can agree that most of our government representatives don’t look out for the best interest of the people. Party agendas and lobbying have done away with pure representation of the people, but that’s true for both major parties.” Does that sound like someone fond of either one of the major political parities?

        Oh and please point out my red herring… I don’t recall attacking anyone but the author, which was well deserved.

        P.S. I will no longer entertain any replies that contain any mention of political parties. I’m here to talk politics not bitch and play the blame game.

        • Hobbes83

          If you truly believe the crap you have just posted, I think that its safe to say that you have no real understanding of politics on either a local or a national level. BTW, you are confusing a red herring with an ad hominem logical fallacy.

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