Moms Matter

Mitt Romney’s advisors are no fools. He has chosen Paul Ryan, the ideologue of the Tea Party, as his running mate. And let’s be clear, in the veep vetting process, Ryan and others provided the Romney camp with several years of tax returns. Ahem.

I was hoping Mitt Romney would offer the American people a political olive branch to demonstrate his willingness to work across party lines to boost our nation. Instead, he has chosen a staunchly conservative political ally who is more concerned with beating Barack Obama than helping fellow Americans.

This tunnel-vision mentality continues to fuel the hubris of this ticket. We don’t need more entrenched partisanship, especially as vehement as Paul Ryan.

Paul Ryan has been a Yes Man for the Republican party since he headed to Washington at an admirably young age. In his 13-year term he has successfully passed two bills; he renamed a post office and lowered excise tax on arrow shafts (how apropos coming from a man who partakes in bow hunting). Under both Democrat and Republican controlled houses, no one has embraced Paul Ryan’s new social contract. The deep thinker, budgetary expert, charismatic Midwestern father cloak is nothing but theater. Political posturing has been Ryan’s MO since hitting the Hill. He has simply shown no willingness to reach across party lines and compromise with his Democratic peers, instead focusing on his own self aggrandizement. Is saying no to compromise really an admirable trait? In short, both men are rich in hubris and bankrupt when it comes to humanity.

The Romney/Ryan ticket is simply bad for Americans, young and old. Their ideals represent an unwavering and blind allegiance to the uber rich while punishing the poor and middle classes. Their disdain for socioeconomic classes beneath them is deplorable. Their budget and ideals further boost the wealthy on the backs of the rest of us. Trickle down economics doesn’t work! The budget must be balanced and it must help all Americans.

The middle class cannot -- and should not -- bear the burden for the gaping hole left by the nation’s wealthiest few who do not pay taxes.

No jobs will be borne of the Ryan budget plan. In fact, the U.S. could lose a million jobs under this plan. Drastically cutting Pell Grants and Head Start would damage the future U.S. job market and compromise our intellectual capital, rendering us worthless in an expanding, complicated global economy. Cutting Medicare hurts the elderly, a segment of our population that has paid into the system and represents a generation we should nourish rather than neglect. Fair pay for women. Equal rights. DOMA. Birth control. Non discrimination protection. Hate crime prevention. Say goodbye to it all with Paul Ryan tugging on Romney’s puppet strings.

The silver lining is this: the Romney/Ryan ticket has opened up dialogue in this country to discuss real issues and the people they affect rather than typical political ideology. Let’s take this opportunity to talk about the people affected, not just the statistics as faceless numbers. Let’s open up the floor to talk about our country’s moral compass, where we envision ourselves as a nation, what it means to take care of one’s own, what education can do to help the impoverished, how stable health care can bring peace of mind to the elderly, what a little girl’s life will look like as she grows into a woman in this country, how we view civil rights, human rights, and the Bill of Rights.

If there were ever a time to fully examine the issues, the time is now. Too many people are blinded by campaign and party rhetoric or a candidate’s charm and good looks and vote against their own interests. I’ve been doing my homework. In my estimation, Paul Ryan cannot be underestimated.

Nor can he be trusted.

This post is part of a weekly conversation with our Moms Matter 2012 political bloggers. To see the original question and what the other writers have to say, see "Romney Picks Paul Ryan as VP."

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