Ben Smith and Zeke Miller have anonymous (of course) Romney aides washing their hands of the Ryan choice.
“Everybody was against [Ryan] to start with only Romney for,” said one top Republican, who is skeptical of the choice and griped that Romney’s top advisors have “been giving Mitt everything he wanted in this campaign.”
The Buzzfeed story gives the impression that this is nervous and earnest. Isn’t there at least some possibility that it’s spin made to portray Romney as Bold and Decisive? No offense meant to Tim Pawlenty, but it’s awfully tough to imagine people pounding the table and crying his name.
Dylan Byers captures the Bill Kristol moment. You have to love the pundit’s response to the “why is he always so wrong” meme.
That argument is almost as silly as someone saying that in the 80s I was a supporter of Reagan’s foreign policy, which won the Cold War, and his tax cuts, which led to economic growth; in the 90s I supported intervention in the Balkans and welfare reform, both of which worked; and in the last decade I opposed Harriet Miers, whose withdrawal paved the way for a terrific justice, Sam Alito; and I supported the surge in Iraq, which worked — and, therefore, I’m some sort of prophet!
I absolutely love this tidbit in Paul Kane’s Ryan profile.
Before he unveiled an ambitious budget, called a “Road Map for America’s Future,” in 2009, Ryan sent the proposal to Gigot first, seeking his opinion before asking his own party’s leaders. Ever since, each Ryan budget offering has first been unveiled as an op-ed in the Journal.
And at least one former governor of Alaska will not speak at the RNC.
Finally:
