Romney's running mate: Paul Ryan?

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By Jonathan Bradley in Sydney, Australia

11 August 2012

Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan

If reports are to be believed, in a few hours Mitt Romney will announce Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate. I'll have plenty more to say about the pick in the days ahead, but, for now, I'll just point out how rare it is for a campaign to elevate a member of the House of Representatives straight to the vice-presidency. The last VP to be elected straight from the House was John Nance Garner in 1932 — and he was Speaker, not a mere committee chair like Ryan. (Geraldine Ferraro in 1984 and William E. Miller in 1964 were House members when nominated for the VP slot but belonged to losing campaigns, while Gerald Ford ascended to the vice-presidency from the minority leadership after Spiro Agnew resigned.)

The reason for that is that campaigning before the entire nation is a very different task to campaigning to a House district, and senators and governors, who have had to appeal to entire states, are much better equipped to handle the step up than House members. Paul Ryan might have been frequently discussed in newspapers and magazines, but the only people he's ever genuinely had to convince of his worth are his constituents in Wisconsin.

That doesn't mean history has determined Romney will lose — perhaps an eighty year streak will be broken this November. But it's an example of how weird the Ryan pick is. Unless you think the most crucial constituency in this election is subscribers to the National Review or The Weekly Standard, it makes no sense. "As goes Bill Kristol, so goes America" isn't a viable campaign strategy.

UPDATE: And it's official. Romney/Ryan 2012.

Tags: Election 2012, Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan, Romney Ryan 2012, Veepstakes, Vice President