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Paul Ryan, like all House Republicans, voted against the stimulus package. Then Paul Ryan, like a bunch of House Republicans, wrote letters to federal agencies requesting stimulus funds for his district. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this – if there’s money on the table, you’re not doing your job as a legislator unless you try to grab some of it – but it does smack of hypocrisy. That’s especially true if you deny writing the letters and then get presented with them:
After repeated denials, Paul Ryan has admitted he requested stimulus cash even after sharply criticizing the program.
Ryan had denied doing so as recently as Wednesday, when he spoke to ABC’s Cincinnati affiliate, WCPO, in Ohio.
“I never asked for stimulus,” Mitt Romney’s new running mate said. “I don’t recall… so I really can’t comment on it. I opposed the stimulus because it doesn’t work, it didn’t work.”
Two years ago, during an interview on WBZ’s NewsRadio he was asked by a caller if he “accepted any money” into his district. Ryan said he did not.
“I’m not one [of those] people who votes for something then writes to the government to ask them to send us money. I did not request any stimulus money,” the congressman answered.
But as we’ve now learned, Ryan did write letters. He did request stimulus funds.
Ryan now calls the letters “part of constituent service.” Which is fine. But I think the casual lying in service to ideology matters more here. And it’s part of a pattern for a guy who’s only appeared on the national stage for a week. Ryan spent yesterday railing against China for manipulating its currency despite spending his entire career in Congress opposing measures that would have cracked down on Chinese currency manipulation and other unfair trade practices. Ryan has now done a triple flip on the Medicare savings in the Affordable Care Act, saying that they “were already in the baseline” and that’s how they made their way into his budget, and then disavowing his own budget by saying he would restore the “cuts” (which is another way of saying he would restore wasteful subsidies to Medicare Advantage and reimbursements to hospitals they have already agreed to forego).
Ryan tries to parry these clear flip-flops and dissembling statements by saying “I don’t want to get wonky on you” over and over. But these aren’t obscure, technical things that anyone would have trouble figuring out. Paul Ryan lies a lot. Period.
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He even lies about his Ayn Rand worship.
He’s yet another GOP avatar of Stig O’Tracy — except he lies even when told that there’s proof that he’s lying.
The Tea party types believe they deserve Fed. aid $$, but nobody else deserves it, that explains Mr. Ryan’s problem. He’s just another Reptilian hypocrite.
Stupid dick Ryan. He should emulate Obama’s 2008 campaign and tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
To be fair – not that I want to be with this creep – all pols LIE like rugs anymore. The big fat LIES they tell depends upon whom they are pandering to at any given moment.
Of course Ryan asked for and got stimulus money, and whether directly or indirectly, his doltish Tea Party constiuents benefited from it. But as has been pointed out already, the TeaPers only want their “own kind” to benefit from any kind of aid, so of course they are yapping about this.
Never fear: this LIE will be forgotten momentarily when the next bullshit distration can be pounced upon.
If I were the administration I’d make a big deal about this. This is the second time the hypocrisy of the GOP has been exposed. The administration should have done more than “make a statement” regarding the misleading welfare reform ads where Obama should have learned that the adage no good deed goes unpunished in regards to giving GOP governors latitude when it comes to programs(see welfare and health care for examples).
Then again I’m not the admin and I didn’t spend a year lying to progressives to be elected the first go round.
You do a fine job D.D. but I would caution against using the issue of “campaign lies” as a way to distinguish the Democratic candidates from the GOP’s…
We all know the damage already done through Obama’s outright lies…
just sayin’
Ryan now calls the letters “part of constituent service.”
If, as a Congressman, he does not accept that “the buck stops here”, will he demonstrate leadership in an executive role by accepting responsibility for actions of his underlings. Whether he requested stimulus, or merely signed his signature on such a letter drafted by an underling–HE is responsible. To whine, deflect, finger-point or (that all-time favorite) FORGET–the buck still ended at his desk!
This looks like the perfect ticket – two liars. Willard’s Flip to Ryan’s Flop. They can continue to lie to the MSM on the campaign trail, and the press is too lazy and gutless to call them out. In the 2008 VP debate, Palin’s “Can I call you Joe” and her winking and playing to the audience slightly disarmed Biden. When Ryan goes up against him, Joe will not only rip him over the Ryan budget and Medicare, but he will probably string together a litany of Ryan votes that were anti-women. When Biden gets his stem wound there aren’t many better at doing it this side of Bill Clinton.
Boy, now there’s a real “dog bites man” headline. I don’t have the link at hand, but, as I recall, it was President-elect Obama himself who chided a reporter in December 2008 for suggesting that he might be held to something he’d said during the primary campaign. It’s not like, you know, anybody is supposed to believe anything a campaigning politician says. The logical consequence is for the almost instantaneous documentation of a lie to be treated as the non-event it is. We know they’re going to lie before they speak. Oh, sure, one can always work up a little indignation, somewhere, somehow, especially when it’s about someone not wearing the home jersey — but nobody really cares. It’s all good. Electertainment.
I see the cultural commitment to political untruth every day — aided and abetted and defended even by decent citizens I actually like and respect. (“This is the most important presidential election EVER!” anyone?) The truth really, truly doesn’t matter in American electoral politics. Hell, they don’t even count votes if they can find some way not to. And The Powers That Be can, whether it’s by impeding an actual honest count or simply by rewarding “our” elected representatives for devoting themselves to activities that do the vast majority of their constituents absolutely no good: war, “bankruptcy reform,” “welfare reform,” “banking reform,” health insurance care (the “care” being provided to health insurance companies, not to you), tax breaks and legal immunity for the wealthy, cuts to social security, Medicare and food stamps, and the end of privacy, civil liberties and the rule of law generally.
If not lies, what? There’s nothing left for the criminal classes to talk about but the unspeakable self-serving path ahead. Fanciful lies, from both Democrats and Republicans, are to all appearances the only thing rendering corrupt two-party elections palatable to the American public they so clearly do not serve.
That rant ranted, David — I would be remiss not to thank you for your seemingly tireless reporting on…well, the truth.
Just like Romney. They’re quite well matched that way.
They’re taking Ryan apart on this matter in the comments at the WaPo today. I have to admit to being amused.
Do you think it’d be o.k. if in the future we simply refer to Paul Ryan as “Sir Liesalot”?
His favorite band is Rage Against the Machine. Feh
Apparently Rage Against the Machine is not so impressed with him.