Lord, the Brawler's tired of media fawning over man of integrity Paul Ryan.
What does he mean? Stuff like this, from Fred Barnes (via Patrick McIlheran):
Fred Barnes writes about uncompassionate conservatives -- the ones worried about having lost the GOP reputation for actually being careful with your money.
"They want it back," Barnes writes. "And they are willing to be pilloried by Democrats as pitiless, cruel, unfeeling, callous, uncaring, coldhearted, and Scrooge-like to get it. That's how important it is to Republicans to be seen again as politicians who can be counted on to restrain or, better yet, slash government spending, even in the case of popular programs.
" 'It would be refreshing to be accused of being heartless and frugal, rather than getting in a bidding war on spending with the Democrats like we have lately,' says Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee."
Let's be plain: Ryan's calls for a "frugal" budget went absolutely nowhere when his profligate party was in power. Ryan himself prostituted himself by signing off on an expensive Medicare drug bill in exchange for an expansion of his much loved -- by him and Paddy that is -- HSAs. His calls for frugality now are just good PR for a GOP that would never have given him this leadership position if they were still in the majority.
Calling for frugality when he's in the minority does not make Paul Ryan in any way courageous.
What would make Paul Ryan courageous is if he were to break with his party and call for the US to pull out of Iraq. Why? Because that would entail Paul Ryan actually backing up his words with action.
What words? These words about our "surge" in Iraq (from the 2/22/07 Journal Sentinel):
"This whole thing is a big gamble, but it's probably the best gamble to take before throwing in the towel and allowing sectarian genocide to take over," said Ryan, who was visiting Iraq for the first time. "I personally give this three to six months to find out."
So Paul Ryan was saying we should know no later than August 22, on the outside, whether the surge was working.
Unfortunately, King David Petraeus has made it clear that his report to Congress in September will not represent a decisive moment for a war and occupation that's gone on longer than World War II. That is, no one will be able to say the surge has "worked."
Calling for budgets that wouldn't have passed Congress when your party was in the majority is not courageous. Taking a stand that sets you apart from your party -- and is consistent with your past statements -- is.
So one can only assume that if Paul Ryan is courageous, he is now working on his "throw in the towel" speech. Because dollars to donuts he, and other Iraq deadenders, will be delivering such speeches before the 2008 election anyway in order to distance themselves from George Bush's occupation of Iraq.
When it comes to spending why is it Ryan and the rest of the GOpranos act like the money being peed down the hole in Iraq and on our massive military budget is not magicaly there?
Posted by: kr | June 21, 2007 at 08:35 PM