The New Clarion

Mitt Romney chose Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconson to be his Vice-President running mate. This is the boldest and most impressive move of Romney’s political career so far. He chose his intellectual superior to run with him, the opposite of what Obama did when he chose Joltin’ Joe Biden, man of a thousand gaffes.

Let’s be clear up front: Ryan is not the perfect candidate. He has HUGE problems. He is a religious conservative, an enemy of abortion, and has voted for such statist power grabs as the prescription medicine bill and TARP. In other words, he is a Republican. He is most certainly NOT an Objectivist, although the left seems to think it will help them to pin that label on him.

Contrary to many of the political race-horse pros, I think the Ryan pick was a brilliant strategic move. Obama and his PAC’s have spent hundreds of millions of dollars attempting to “define” (smear) Romney’s character. Think of the nonsense the media has obsessed over in the last few months: Romney is a bully; Romney is mean to dogs; Romney is a wimp; Romney is rich and out of touch; Romney won’t disclose his taxes; Romney killed Joe Soptic’s wife. In one day all of that effort was was destroyed. This election will not be about Romney’s character, but about ideas. This election will give voters a clear choice — do you want more government or less?

I submit this is a disaster for the Democrats. When ideology prevails, the left loses. Look at the landslides of 1972 and 1984 and Contract with America in 1994.

Ryan credits Ayn Rand with inspiring him to enter politics. He used to give copies of Atlas Shrugged to staffers. This is all to the good, and is why he is one of the better Republicans. But this year he has made an effort to disavow Rand. Yaron Brook said today he is suspicious of the timing. He thinks Ryan made it clear he is not an Objectivist because the Romney team was vetting him, and Romney wanted to clear up this troubling association with the atheist Rand. An atheist has no chance of gaining power in today’s Republican Party.

Despite the many problems with Romney/Ryan, I intend to vote for them in November. Obama’s first term has been a four-year, vulgar display of statist power. Obama must go. I don’t think freedom in America can survive a second Obama term. He has shown he cares nothing about the will of the people, the legislative process or the rule of law. What power grabs he cannot push through Congress, he will declare by executive order like a dictator. And not having to worry about reelection, he will be unrestrained to do whatever he wants. For the sake of all that is good, including your money and your liberty, this man must be defeated.

The moment Obama is defeated, I will begin watching Romney/Ryan carefully. Nothing statist or collectivist that they do will be ignored. By 2016 I fully expect to loathe them as much as I loathed Bush. This is better than the enormities we would suffer with Obama II.

I could be wrong, but I don’t think this election will even be close. Romney/Ryan vs. Obama/Biden is the Chess Club vs. the Choom Gang.

UPDATE: Slight revision. Changed Choom Club to Choom Gang, the correct name of Obama’s high school gang of stoners.