If Mitt Romney and Ryan can successfully counterattack Mediscare, the Ryan effect becomes a major plus. Because:
(a) Ryan nationalizes the election and makes it ideological, reprising the 2010 dynamic that delivered a “shellacking” to the Democrats.
(b) If the conversation is about big issues, Obama cannot hide from his dismal economic record and complete failure of vision. In Obama’s own on-camera commercial — “the choice . . . couldn’t be bigger” — what’s his big idea? A 4.6-point increase in the marginal tax rate of 2 percent of the population.
For a country with stagnant growth, ruinous debt and structural problems crying out for major entitlement and tax reform? ItÂ’s a joke.
(c) Image. Ryan, fresh and 42, brings youth, energy and vitality — the very qualities Obama projected in 2008 and has by now depleted. From transcendence to the political gutter in under four years. A new Olympic record.
And while Romney is the present, Ryan is the future. RomneyÂ’s fate will be determined on Nov. 6. RyanÂ’s presence, assuming he acquits himself well in the campaign, will extend for decades. If Ryan does it well, win or lose in 2012, he becomes a dominant national force. Mild and moderate Mitt Romney will have shaped the conservative future for years to come.The cunning of history. Or if you prefer, its sheer capriciousness.
Krauthammer - RTWT