Republican vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., works with Republican members of the House Budget Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington.When presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney selected Paul Ryan, the House Budget Committee Chairman, as his running mate on Saturday morning, many conservatives across America rejoiced.
The selection of Ryan served as an olive branch to factions under the Republican tent who were dubious of Romney and his record as Massachusetts governor, which includes mandating health insurance and hiking a number of fees. Ryan, who is beloved by many in the Tea Party movement, is seen as a much-needed bridge between the boring, old, rich, white, entitled Republican Party that Romney personifies so well and the middle class, limited government, Tea Party-tinted folks that actually represent the majority of GOP voters.
Ryan, who earned his Tea Party bona fides by authoring much of “The Path to Prosperity,” the Republican Party’s highly regarded cost-cutting budget proposal, and speaking at Tea Party rallies across America, can do the three most important things a vice presidential candidate could do for a party nominee.
First, Ryan can galvanize a segment of potential voters that Romney hasn’t managed to excite. Namely, the aforementioned Tea Partiers, as well as libertarian and fiscally conservative voters, who, understandably, don’t trust Romney as far as they can throw him on issues of spending and entitlement reform.
Second, if he does manage to draw in segments of the Republican base that Romney could not, Ryan can bring in new financial contributors and more money for the campaign, a necessity with so many states still up for grabs on the Electoral College map.