October 29, 2015

"Representative Paul D. Ryan of Wisconsin was elected the 62nd speaker of the House on Thursday..."

"... taking the gavel that he never sought to wield from John A. Boehner, who relinquished it under fire," says the NYT.
Mr. Ryan received 236 votes, a comfortable margin that included several of the hardline conservatives who had worked to oust Mr. Boehner.

47 comments:

lgv said...

New speaker, just like the old speaker.

Scott said...

I can't think of a better choice than Paul Ryan.

traditionalguy said...

The great State Georgia would like to re-nominate the true best GOP Speaker of The House. Newt Gingrich.

The mid-western guys seem too eager to sell out.

rehajm said...

I see they are giving him an opportunity for last words before feeding him to the lions.

Original Mike said...

I have a lot of hope for Ryan. He appears to understand the grave nature of deficit spending at the levels we've been using for decades and had the balls to put out a blueprint for addressing the issue.

David said...

An excellent choice. And hats off to his predecessor, a decent and able man caught in a crossfire of absolutism.

Also good for Wisconsin.

Nonapod said...

Speaker of the House is an absolutely thankless job. No matter what happens most people won't know or care who you are, and when they do they'll most likely hate you and blame you for everything that's wrong. There are no real upsides to the job as far as I can tell.

Tank said...

Original Mike said...

I have a lot of hope for Ryan. He appears to understand the grave nature of deficit spending at the levels we've been using for decades and had the balls to put out a blueprint for addressing the issue.


This is what he sounds like when he talks. His voting record is to the contrary. His plans are shit...balance the budget ten years from now? Worthless.

A poseur.

Original Mike said...

"balance the budget ten years from now? Worthless."

This is something else I like. He's realistic.

MadisonMan said...

Ryan's next job, easier, will be cat-herding.

I wish him luck as Speaker.

Hagar said...

"Compromise" with the Democrats in Congress seem to go all one way, and so it must necessarily be as along as the Democrat congress critters put up with the Reid-Pelosi style of leadership.

garage mahal said...

The same day GM announces they are shuttering the plant in Ryan's hometown for good. Seems appropriate.

Original Mike said...

"The same day GM announces they are shuttering the plant in Ryan's hometown for good. Seems appropriate."

You would have the government do what, exactly?

traditionalguy said...

The Jaynesville good boy has his work cut out for him. But will he go along to get along with Dem plots like the hoax that CO2 is pollution War? If being good means being a good criminal operative, than what good is his saintly image?

Gahrie said...

Get back to me when the Republican Party decides that the Democratic Party are their opponents rather than Conservatives.

Actually killing the Im-Ex bank would be a good start...

Matt Sablan said...

"His plans are shit...balance the budget ten years from now? Worthless."

-- The problem is without firm Republican control in both Congress and the White House, that's the best he's going to get.

Achilles said...

garage mahal said...
"The same day GM announces they are shuttering the plant in Ryan's hometown for good. Seems appropriate."

Obama did such a good job saving GM. What went wrong?

Achilles said...

Matthew Sablan said...
"His plans are shit...balance the budget ten years from now? Worthless."

"-- The problem is without firm Republican control in both Congress and the White House, that's the best he's going to get."

So if the Republicans control everything, we can hope for what? What happens if they control the White House and the House but the Dem's control the senate? I guess we will just have to settle for 1 Trillion a year in deficit spending.

rhhardin said...

Revenues don't increase until a few years after you lower the regulation and tax rates, so you can't do the necessary fix and balance the budget both. It's the reverse hysteresis from getting into this mess.

I'd say reduce the deficit by 20% a year forever, including by similarly reducing doubtful entitlements. That limits the national debt, starts the necessary growth path, and gets rid of unhelpful entitlements without ever having to vote to eliminate them.

A political plus.

Tank said...

How come there's never any excuse why Democrats can't get their way?

How about 19 Trillion in debt already?

How about 150T + in unfunded liabilities?

How about the immoral way we are spending our children's and grandchildren's future?

How about we stop chopping up babies for sale?

How about we NOT bail out anymore banks?

How about we stop paying people not to work?

There is ALWAYS some excuse not to do the fiscally sound or conservative thing. Ryan is a specialist in this.

Hagar said...

Congress is supposed to be a place where legislation is proposed and debated - within the parties as well as between them - but as long as deviation from the party line is not permitted within the Democratic Party and they hold the White House, genuine compromises are not possible.
This has been so successful for the "progressive" wing of the Democratic Party that I do not see this changing until the Republicans get a veto-proof majority in Congress and/or the White House.

damikesc said...

And hats off to his predecessor, a decent and able man caught in a crossfire of absolutism.


Sorry...but fuck Boehner. A 2 year budget, which is not done, to sell out as completely as possible to the Dems. Screw him.

Bay Area Guy said...

Ryan is a good man, telegenic, a good fund-raiser, very smart.

He has two weaknesses that Conservatives are going to have to watch, and pressure him to the do the right thing: (1) immigration and (2) spending.

As for the first, there is a huge pro-amnesty voting block in the GOP, mostly the Chamber of Commerce types. They like low wages. Ryan is simpatico with them.

As for the second, nobody can figure out the budget, debt ceiling, sequestering, all that esoteric garbage. If the GOP however wins the White House and maintains its control Congress, there will be no excuse when it comes time to reigning in Govt spending. Either they do it, or it can't be done.

eric said...

The good thing about Ryan is he does better on the television. I mean, orange Boehner? Ugh. No one wanted to listen to him or watch him. Paul Ryan on the other hand can sell ideas better.

The bad thing about Paul Ryan is he will continue the excuse parade never to get anything conservative done.

Frustrating.

Rick said...

lgv said...
New speaker, just like the old speaker.
.

Maybe we should see what he does at speaker before pronouncing judgement.

Curious George said...

"garage mahal said...
The same day GM announces they are shuttering the plant in Ryan's hometown for good. Seems appropriate."

It's being closed because the UAW is throwing it under the bus for raises, health care improvements and big signing bonuses for GM workers.

Solidarity Forever! Solidarity Forever! Solidarity Forever.

Matt Sablan said...

"How come there's never any excuse why Democrats can't get their way?"

-- Because they're willing to do things Republicans have yet to be willing to do. Republicans will never pass something as sweeping as the ACA because A) We're not in as much lockstep as Democrats and B) We have a begrudging respect for How Things Are Done.

Michael K said...

"The same day GM announces they are shuttering the plant in Ryan's hometown for good. Seems appropriate."

Yes and you are befuddled about why GM, shortly after Obama took over, fired all the dealers who had supported Republicans. Funny how that happens to any Obama project.

Michael K said...

"there will be no excuse when it comes time to reigning in Govt spending. Either they do it, or it can't be done. "

There is a third alternative. Bankruptcy. It's coming and after that, nobody knows what will happen.

Matt Sablan said...

Don't get me wrong: Republicans in Congress could be more effective. But, as always, they're tepid and resistant to big moves/changes. It's been their calling card for a long time. That combined with their realistic fear that any misstep will be turned into a catastrophe by the media, combined with the constant fear "Will this be the thing that gets me called racist/sexist/homophobic and ends my career?" has made them gunshy.

Ignorance is Bliss said...

Michael K said...

There is a third alternative. Bankruptcy

I don't believe that bankruptcy is a legal option for the federal government. By that I don't mean that the law prohibits it, I mean that there is no process for it to happen. No place to file for bankruptcy, no court to approve a settlement.

Instead, there are two other options: print the money needed to pay the debts, in essence inflating it away, or default on the debt and tell the bondholders to take a hike. The second of those two is explicitly unconstitutional, which seems a pretty minor speed bump in this day and age.

Freeman Hunt said...

Hey, something went right in politics! It's a Halloween miracle!

Thorley Winston said...

Hey, something went right in politics! It's a Halloween miracle!

You’re just saying that because someone confused John Boehner for the Great Pumpkin. Again.

;)

Thorley Winston said...

He has two weaknesses that Conservatives are going to have to watch, and pressure him to the do the right thing: (1) immigration and (2) spending.

The “good news” is Boehner pushed through a budget deal to get the federal government through March 2017 and Ryan said immigration is off the table for the next two years. Much as I hate kicking the can on important issues down the road (and I am generally not a higher fan of the increased spending in the budget deal), I recognize the political reality that a government shutdown next year while Republicans control both Houses of Congress is only going to help Clinton get elected and possibly lead to Democrats picking up seats in the Senate.

Boehner basically bought the country and Republicans some breathing room to come up with a long-term fix after the election. Ryan to his credit has been pretty good at coming up with long-term proposals to deal with intransigent problems like entitlement reform so I’m taking this move as a sign that if we have a Republican president (and pretty much all of the serious contenders recognize the need for entitlement reform) that we will see Speaker Ryan put forth a workable proposal to get spending on track that focuses on reforming Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.

As far as immigration reform goes – amnesty isn’t the only way Republicans lose on this issue. We lose when the loud and angry types dominate the conversation and alienate non-white voters. I think Republicans do need to pass some form of immigration reform that is focused on (a) border security/enforcement and (b) fixing the problems in the system that make it so costly, time consuming and difficult for people who are trying to do the right thing. A massive amnesty (which is a poison pill for immigration reform) doesn’t need to be part of the deal if we have the votes in Congress and a president who is willing to sign that bill into law and it could be a significant win for Republicans who are trying to court Latino voters as well as the millions of other Americans who have had difficulties both personally and with their family members who are trying to navigate through our broken immigration system.

garage mahal said...

The fired Republican auto dealers story. Old zombie lie, but a good one!

garage mahal said...

BIG UNION BOSSES!

Hagar said...

I don't know that a big amnesty bill is necessary, at least in the near future.
The immigration process is in such a mess now that it is going to take a long time to get it straightened out. Just to start again enforcing the existing laws is going to be a tough slog. All the various police agencies will be suspicious and want to see evidence that it is not just another passing fad and they will be left holding the bag again. And, of course, there will first have to be something done about the local legislatures and executives who have engaged in the much more serious crime of sedition by ordering their local police not to cooperate with the federal agencies.
And I think we will have to have some kind of an operating system, before an "amnesty" bill that makes any sense can be adopted.

Hagar said...

Passing laws make no sense if there is no intention or capability to enforce them.

JackWayne said...

Anyone who thinks that Boehner has truly moved the budget and debt issues to 2017 is not paying attention. Part of the deal was to "freeze" the debt at roughly $19T. That means that the debt will be a lot higher when the CR expires. The debt has been frozen at &18T for 6 months. I believe that if we get a Republican Treasurer we will find out that the debt in 2017 is closer to $22T. This year we rolled over $8T in debt and paid a premium of hundreds of billions. That "money" is never counted in the budget. I reckon they get it from the money tree so it's free. Next year we will probably rollover more than $8T costing even more in premiums. Micheal K has the right idea. At the current rate of rollover we are probably looking at rolling over the entire debt in one year within 5 years. The next year we will be rolling over the entire debt in a matter of months. After that no bank will want any part of our paper. But I'm sure that the Wisconsin Wizard has a plan for this.

Michael said...

Garage

Go buy some GM cars and/or trucks, dude. Just don't buy those hecho en Mexico.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

I promise I'll stop spending more than I earn someday.

Just not today or tomorrow.

Trust me.

phantommut said...

So he went from the Democrats' Favorite to a Very Bad Man instantaneously.

Matt Sablan said...

"So he went from the Democrats' Favorite to a Very Bad Man instantaneously. "

-- At least he didn't have to die, like most "good Republicans."

rehajm said...

lgv said...
New speaker, just like the old speaker.


He dissed Nancy on the hug. Change is in the air!

Alex said...

I wonder why garage believes the shuttering of a GM plant in Ryan's district is relevant to his qualifications as Speaker?

Dr.D said...

This is most unfortunate for the US as a whole. We go from bad to very bad, or perhaps even worse. We have had a look at Paul Ryan before when he ran for VP, and it was not a pretty sight. Why he was such a shoo in I have no idea.

Drago said...

Alex: "I wonder why garage believes the shuttering of a GM plant in Ryan's district is relevant to his qualifications as Speaker?"

Apparently, local management, corporate management, the workers, the unions, the shareholders, were all simply bystanders watching in horror as a US Congressman destroyed this particular business.

That's about the level of "business understanding" you internalize when you barely scraped your way out of woodshop.