.gif)
Paul Ryan (politician)
Encyclopedia
Paul Davis Ryan is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1999. He is a member of the Republican Party
and has been ranked among the party's most influential voices on economic policy.
Born and raised in Janesville, Wisconsin
, Ryan graduated from Miami University
in Ohio and reportedly worked as a marketing consultant to Ryan Incorporated Central, an earth-moving company, which is run by a branch of his family. In the mid-to-late 1990s he worked as an aide to United States Senator Bob Kasten
, as legislative director for Senator Sam Brownback
of Kansas
, and also as a speech writer for former U.S. Representative and 1996 Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Jack Kemp
of New York
. He won a 1998 election to succeed two-term Representative Mark Neumann
in the United States House of Representatives
.
Ryan is the chairman of the House Budget Committee
, where he played a prominent public role in drafting and promoting the Republican Party's long-term budget proposal. He introduced the plan, The Path to Prosperity
, in April 2011 to counter the budget proposal of President Barack Obama
. Ryan is one of the three co-founders of the Young Guns Program, an electoral recruitment and campaign effort by House Republicans.
. Ryan's mother is an outdoors enthusiast who led her husband and four kids (a sister, Janet, and two brothers, Tobin and Stan) on regular trips to hike and ski in the Colorado Rockies. He is a fifth-generation Wisconsin and Janesville native and a great-grandson of Patrick W. Ryan, who founded the Ryan Incorporated Central construction business in 1884.
Ryan attended Joseph A. Craig High School
in Janesville and was sixteen years old when he found his father in bed, dead of a heart attack at age 55. Ryan's grandfather had also died of a heart attack at age 57, as had his great-grandfather also similarly died of a heart attack at age 59. Ryan began collecting his Social Security survivor's benefits
until age eighteen, which he saved for college tuition and expenses.
Ryan briefly worked during college for the Oscar Mayer
meat
and cold cut
production company as a Wienermobile
driver. He went on to graduate from Miami University
in Oxford, Ohio
, with a B.A.
in economics
and political science
in 1992. Ryan also studied at the Washington Semester program at American University
. Ryan was a member of the Delta Tau Delta
social fraternity
.
Ryan worked within the private sector as a marketing consultant to an earth-moving company run by a branch of his family after he returned to Wisconsin from Washington, D.C. .
. In his early years as a D.C. staffer, Ryan moonlighted on Capitol Hill as a waiter at the Tortilla Coast restaurant and as a fitness trainer at Washington Sport and Health Club, among various other side jobs.
Out of fear that Ryan "...was destined to become a ski bum", Betty Ryan reportedly nudged her son to accept another congressional position as a staff economist attached to the office of U.S. Senator Bob Kasten.
After Kasten was defeated by Democrat Russ Feingold
in 1992, Ryan became a speechwriter and a volunteer economic analyst with Empower America, an advocacy group formed by Jack Kemp, former education secretary Bill Bennett, the late diplomat Jeane Kirkpatrick
and former Minnesota Rep. Vin Weber
.
Ryan worked as a speechwriter for Vice-Presidential candidate Kemp during the 1996 United States presidential election
and later worked as legislative director for U.S. Senator Sam Brownback
of Kansas. Ryan then returned to Wisconsin where he worked as a consultant to an earth-moving company and began campaigning for the 1998 U.S. congressional elections.
Ryan is one of the three founding members of the House GOP Young Guns Program.
In 2008, Ryan voted for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Wall Street bailout that precipitated the Tea Party, and the bailout of GM and Chrysler.
In 2010, The Daily Telegraph
ranked Ryan the ninth most influential US conservative. In 2011, Ryan was selected to deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union address
.
, Medicaid
, and Social Security
; lift the debt from future generations; and promote economic growth and job creation in America. It did not move past committee.
On April 1, 2009, Ryan introduced his alternative to the 2010 United States federal budget
. This proposed alternative would have eliminated the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
, lowered the top tax rate to 25%, introduced an 8.5% value-added consumption tax
, and imposed a five-year spending freeze on all discretionary spending. It would also have replaced the Medicare system. Instead, it proposed that starting in 2021, the federal government would pay part of the cost of private medical insurance for individuals turning 65. Ryan's proposed budget would also have allowed taxpayers to opt out of the federal income taxation system with itemized deduction
s, and instead pay a flat 10 percent of adjusted gross income up to $100,000 and 25 percent on any remaining income. Ryan's proposed budget was heavily criticized by opponents for the lack of concrete numbers. It was ultimately rejected in the house by a vote of 293-137, with 38 Republicans in opposition.
In late January 2010, Ryan released a new version of his "Roadmap." It would give across the board tax cuts by reducing income tax rates; eliminating income taxes on capital gain
s, dividends, and interest; and abolishing the corporate income tax, the estate tax, and the alternative minimum tax
. The plan would privatize a portion of Social Security
, eliminate the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance, and privatize MediCare.
On April 15, 2011, the House passed the Ryan Plan
by a vote of 235-193. No Democrats voted for it, and only four Republicans voted against. A month later, the bill died in the Senate by a vote of 57-40.
Economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman
took issue with the contention that Ryan's plan would reduce the deficit, alleging that it only considered proposed spending cuts and failed to take into account the tax changes. According to Krugman, Ryan's plan "would raise taxes for 95 percent of the population" but would produce a $4 trillion revenue loss over ten years because of the tax cuts for the rich. Krugman went on to label the proposed spending cuts a "sham" because they depended on making a severe cut in domestic discretionary spending without specifying the programs to be cut, and on "dismantling Medicare as we know it", which is politically unrealistic.
In response to Krugman, economist and former American Enterprise Institute
scholar Ted Gayer
was more positive toward the Ryan plan. Gayer agreed that, as written, the plan would cause a $4 trillion revenue shortfall over 10 years. He noted, however, that Ryan had expressed a willingness to consider raising the rates in his tax plan. Gayer concluded that "Ryan’s vision of broad-based tax reform, which essentially would shift us toward a consumption tax, ... makes a useful contribution to this debate."
Ramesh Ponnuru
, writing in National Review
, argued that the revenue loss to which Krugman refers is based on a comparison between Ryan's plan and current law, which "includes middle-class tax increases...cuts in payment to Medicare providers...[and] the expansion of the Alternative Minimum Tax." He added that "current law automatically raises the tax rates to pre-Bush levels in 2013...so if you're comparing the tax level with current law, Ryan's plan represents a tax cut" and "the CBO's actual projections for the Ryan plan show a debt level in 2021 that is $4.7 trillion lower than its projections for Obama's budgets."
Rick Foster, the chief actuary of Medicare, endorsed Ryan's plan as the best way to save Medicare from going bankrupt: "I would say that the Roadmap has that potential. There is some potential for the Affordable Care Act price reductions, although I'm a little less confident about that."
retired from his seat in order to make an unsuccessful bid for the Senate. Ryan won both a Republican primary over 29-year-old pianist Michael J. Logan of Twin Lakes
, and the general election against Democratic opponent Lydia Spottswood. Ryan successfully defended his seat against Democratic challenger Jeffrey C. Thomas in 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006.
Ryan is a practicing Catholic and is a member of St. John Vianney’s Parish.
Ryan is a fitness freak and promotes fitness as a daily routine for today's youth. He works out actively using the famous P90x fitness program.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and has been ranked among the party's most influential voices on economic policy.
Born and raised in Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
, Ryan graduated from Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
in Ohio and reportedly worked as a marketing consultant to Ryan Incorporated Central, an earth-moving company, which is run by a branch of his family. In the mid-to-late 1990s he worked as an aide to United States Senator Bob Kasten
Bob Kasten
Robert Walter "Bob" Kasten, Jr. , is a Republican politician from the state of Wisconsin who served as a U.S. Representative from 1975 to 1979 and as a U.S. Senator from 1981 to 1993.- Background :Kasten was born in Milwaukee...
, as legislative director for Senator Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback
Samuel Dale "Sam" Brownback is the 46th and current Governor of Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011, and as a U.S. Representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 1995 to 1996...
of Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
, and also as a speech writer for former U.S. Representative and 1996 Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp
Jack French Kemp was an American politician and a collegiate and professional football player. A Republican, he served as Housing Secretary in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1993, having previously served nine terms as a congressman for Western New York's 31st...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. He won a 1998 election to succeed two-term Representative Mark Neumann
Mark Neumann
Mark W. Neumann is a businessman and politician. He represented from 1995 to 1999. In 2010, Neumann lost a bid to become the Republican nominee for Governor of Wisconsin. Neumann is currently a candidate for U.S...
in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
.
Ryan is the chairman of the House Budget Committee
United States House Committee on the Budget
The U.S. House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of Congress...
, where he played a prominent public role in drafting and promoting the Republican Party's long-term budget proposal. He introduced the plan, The Path to Prosperity
The Path to Prosperity
The Path to Prosperity was the Republican Party's budget proposal for the year 2012. It competed with budget proposals outlined separately by President Barack Obama. and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The Republican proposal was formalized and passed by the House of Representatives on...
, in April 2011 to counter the budget proposal of President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. Ryan is one of the three co-founders of the Young Guns Program, an electoral recruitment and campaign effort by House Republicans.
Early life, education and career
The youngest child of Betty and Paul Murray Ryan, a lawyer, Ryan was born and raised in Janesville, WisconsinJanesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in southern Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat of Rock County and the principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 62,998.-History:...
. Ryan's mother is an outdoors enthusiast who led her husband and four kids (a sister, Janet, and two brothers, Tobin and Stan) on regular trips to hike and ski in the Colorado Rockies. He is a fifth-generation Wisconsin and Janesville native and a great-grandson of Patrick W. Ryan, who founded the Ryan Incorporated Central construction business in 1884.
Ryan attended Joseph A. Craig High School
Joseph A. Craig High School
Joseph A. Craig High School is a public secondary school located in the city of Janesville, Wisconsin. Constructed in 1954 as Janesville Senior High School, it was renamed Craig High School in 1967 when George S. Parker High School was built on the west side of the city. Craig has a student...
in Janesville and was sixteen years old when he found his father in bed, dead of a heart attack at age 55. Ryan's grandfather had also died of a heart attack at age 57, as had his great-grandfather also similarly died of a heart attack at age 59. Ryan began collecting his Social Security survivor's benefits
Social Security (United States)
In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
until age eighteen, which he saved for college tuition and expenses.
Ryan briefly worked during college for the Oscar Mayer
Oscar Mayer
Oscar Mayer is an American meat and cold cut production company, owned by Kraft Foods, known for its hot dogs, bologna, bacon and Lunchables products.-History:...
meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
and cold cut
Cold cut
Cold cuts are cheeses or precooked or cured meat, often sausages or meat loaves, that are sliced and usually served cold on sandwiches or on party trays. They can be bought pre-sliced in vacuum packs at a supermarket or grocery store, or they can be purchased at a delicatessen or deli counter,...
production company as a Wienermobile
Wienermobile
A "Wienermobile" is an automobile shaped like a hot dog on a bun that is used to promote and advertise Oscar Mayer products. It was created in 1936 by Oscar's nephew, Carl G. Mayer, and variants are still used by Oscar Mayer today. In 2004, Oscar Mayer announced a contest whereby customers could...
driver. He went on to graduate from Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
in Oxford, Ohio
Oxford, Ohio
Oxford is a city in northwestern Butler County, Ohio, United States, in the southwestern portion of the state. It lies in Oxford Township, originally called the College Township. The population was 21,943 at the 2000 census. This college town was founded as a home for Miami University. Oxford...
, with a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
and political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
in 1992. Ryan also studied at the Washington Semester program at American University
American University
American University is a private, Methodist, liberal arts, and research university in Washington, D.C. The university was chartered by an Act of Congress on December 5, 1892 as "The American University", which was approved by President Benjamin Harrison on February 24, 1893...
. Ryan was a member of the Delta Tau Delta
Delta Tau Delta
Delta Tau Delta is a U.S.-based international secret letter college fraternity. Delta Tau Delta was founded in 1858 at Bethany College, Bethany, Virginia, . It currently has around 125 student chapters nationwide, as well as more than 25 regional alumni groups. Its national community service...
social fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
.
Ryan worked within the private sector as a marketing consultant to an earth-moving company run by a branch of his family after he returned to Wisconsin from Washington, D.C. .
Early political career
During his junior year at Miami University, Ryan worked as a college intern opening mail for the foreign affairs advisor assigned to Wisconsin Sen. Bob KastenBob Kasten
Robert Walter "Bob" Kasten, Jr. , is a Republican politician from the state of Wisconsin who served as a U.S. Representative from 1975 to 1979 and as a U.S. Senator from 1981 to 1993.- Background :Kasten was born in Milwaukee...
. In his early years as a D.C. staffer, Ryan moonlighted on Capitol Hill as a waiter at the Tortilla Coast restaurant and as a fitness trainer at Washington Sport and Health Club, among various other side jobs.
Out of fear that Ryan "...was destined to become a ski bum", Betty Ryan reportedly nudged her son to accept another congressional position as a staff economist attached to the office of U.S. Senator Bob Kasten.
After Kasten was defeated by Democrat Russ Feingold
Russ Feingold
Russell Dana "Russ" Feingold is an American politician from the U.S. state of Wisconsin. He served as a Democratic party member of the U.S. Senate from 1993 to 2011. From 1983 to 1993, Feingold was a Wisconsin State Senator representing the 27th District.He is a recipient of the John F...
in 1992, Ryan became a speechwriter and a volunteer economic analyst with Empower America, an advocacy group formed by Jack Kemp, former education secretary Bill Bennett, the late diplomat Jeane Kirkpatrick
Jeane Kirkpatrick
Jeane Jordan Kirkpatrick was an American ambassador and an ardent anticommunist. After serving as Ronald Reagan's foreign policy adviser in his 1980 campaign and later in his Cabinet, the longtime Democrat-turned-Republican was nominated as the U.S...
and former Minnesota Rep. Vin Weber
Vin Weber
John Vincent Weber is a former Republican Congressman from Minnesota. Weber attended the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities from 1970 to 1974. He had been the co-publisher of Murray County newspaper and the president of Weber Publishing Company...
.
Ryan worked as a speechwriter for Vice-Presidential candidate Kemp during the 1996 United States presidential election
United States presidential election, 1996
The United States presidential election of 1996 was a contest between the Democratic national ticket of President Bill Clinton of Arkansas and Vice President Al Gore of Tennessee and the Republican national ticket of former Senator Bob Dole of Kansas for President and former Housing Secretary Jack...
and later worked as legislative director for U.S. Senator Sam Brownback
Sam Brownback
Samuel Dale "Sam" Brownback is the 46th and current Governor of Kansas. A member of the Republican Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from Kansas from 1996 to 2011, and as a U.S. Representative for Kansas's 2nd congressional district from 1995 to 1996...
of Kansas. Ryan then returned to Wisconsin where he worked as a consultant to an earth-moving company and began campaigning for the 1998 U.S. congressional elections.
U.S. House of Representatives
Following his first election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1998, one of Ryan's priorities as a new congressman was to convert a truck into a rolling district office. This allowed him to keep regular congressional office hours with his constituents at various and far-flung locations across the Wisconsin First U.S. House District.Ryan is one of the three founding members of the House GOP Young Guns Program.
In 2008, Ryan voted for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the Wall Street bailout that precipitated the Tea Party, and the bailout of GM and Chrysler.
In 2010, The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
ranked Ryan the ninth most influential US conservative. In 2011, Ryan was selected to deliver the Republican response to the State of the Union address
Republican response to the State of the Union address
The Republican response to the State of the Union address, sometimes referred to simply as the Republican response, is a rebuttal speech, often brief, delivered by a representative of the Republican Party following a presidential State of the Union address when the president is a Democrat...
.
Committee assignments
- Committee on the BudgetUnited States House Committee on the BudgetThe U.S. House Committee on the Budget, commonly known as the House Budget Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives, the lower house of Congress...
(Chairman) - Committee on Ways and MeansUnited States House Committee on Ways and MeansThe Committee of Ways and Means is the chief tax-writing committee of the United States House of Representatives. Members of the Ways and Means Committee are not allowed to serve on any other House Committees unless they apply for a waiver from their party's congressional leadership...
- Subcommittee on HealthUnited States House Ways and Means Subcommittee on HealthThe U.S. House Energy Subcommittee on Health is a subcommittee within the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.-Jurisdiction:The House Subcommittee on Health has general jurisdiction over bills and resolutions relating to issues within the scope of the Subcommittee's jurisdiction, and has...
- Subcommittee on Health
Caucus memberships
- Congressional Middle East Economic Partnership Caucus
- International Conservation CaucusUnited States Congressional International Conservation CaucusThe U.S. Congressional International Conservation Caucus is a bipartisan congressional organization that was founded in September 2003 with the conviction that “the United States of America has the opportunity, the obligation and the interests to advance the conservation of natural resources for...
- Sportsmen's Caucus (Co-Chair)
Roadmap for America's Future
On May 21, 2008, Ryan introduced H.R. 6110, titled "Roadmap for America's Future Act of 2008". This proposed legislation outlined a plan to deal with entitlement issues. Its stated objectives were to ensure universal access to health insurance; strengthen MedicareMedicare (United States)
Medicare is a social insurance program administered by the United States government, providing health insurance coverage to people who are aged 65 and over; to those who are under 65 and are permanently physically disabled or who have a congenital physical disability; or to those who meet other...
, Medicaid
Medicaid
Medicaid is the United States health program for certain people and families with low incomes and resources. It is a means-tested program that is jointly funded by the state and federal governments, and is managed by the states. People served by Medicaid are U.S. citizens or legal permanent...
, and Social Security
Social Security (United States)
In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
; lift the debt from future generations; and promote economic growth and job creation in America. It did not move past committee.
On April 1, 2009, Ryan introduced his alternative to the 2010 United States federal budget
2010 United States federal budget
The United States Federal Budget for Fiscal Year 2010, titled A New Era of Responsibility: Renewing America's Promise, is a spending request by President Barack Obama to fund government operations for October 2009–September 2010...
. This proposed alternative would have eliminated the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, abbreviated ARRA and commonly referred to as the Stimulus or The Recovery Act, is an economic stimulus package enacted by the 111th United States Congress in February 2009 and signed into law on February 17, 2009, by President Barack Obama.To...
, lowered the top tax rate to 25%, introduced an 8.5% value-added consumption tax
Consumption tax
A consumption tax is a tax on spending on goods and services. The tax base of such a tax is the money spent on consumption. Consumption taxes are usually indirect, such as a sales tax or a value added tax...
, and imposed a five-year spending freeze on all discretionary spending. It would also have replaced the Medicare system. Instead, it proposed that starting in 2021, the federal government would pay part of the cost of private medical insurance for individuals turning 65. Ryan's proposed budget would also have allowed taxpayers to opt out of the federal income taxation system with itemized deduction
Itemized deduction
An itemized deduction is an eligible expense that individual taxpayers in the United States can report on their federal income tax returns in order to decrease their taxable income....
s, and instead pay a flat 10 percent of adjusted gross income up to $100,000 and 25 percent on any remaining income. Ryan's proposed budget was heavily criticized by opponents for the lack of concrete numbers. It was ultimately rejected in the house by a vote of 293-137, with 38 Republicans in opposition.
In late January 2010, Ryan released a new version of his "Roadmap." It would give across the board tax cuts by reducing income tax rates; eliminating income taxes on capital gain
Capital gain
A capital gain is a profit that results from investments into a capital asset, such as stocks, bonds or real estate, which exceeds the purchase price. It is the difference between a higher selling price and a lower purchase price, resulting in a financial gain for the investor...
s, dividends, and interest; and abolishing the corporate income tax, the estate tax, and the alternative minimum tax
Alternative Minimum Tax
The Alternative Minimum Tax is an income tax imposed by the United States federal government on individuals, corporations, estates, and trusts. AMT is imposed at a nearly flat rate on an adjusted amount of taxable income above a certain threshold . This exemption is substantially higher than the...
. The plan would privatize a portion of Social Security
Social Security (United States)
In the United States, Social Security refers to the federal Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance program.The original Social Security Act and the current version of the Act, as amended encompass several social welfare and social insurance programs...
, eliminate the tax exclusion for employer-sponsored health insurance, and privatize MediCare.
On April 15, 2011, the House passed the Ryan Plan
The Path to Prosperity
The Path to Prosperity was the Republican Party's budget proposal for the year 2012. It competed with budget proposals outlined separately by President Barack Obama. and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. The Republican proposal was formalized and passed by the House of Representatives on...
by a vote of 235-193. No Democrats voted for it, and only four Republicans voted against. A month later, the bill died in the Senate by a vote of 57-40.
Economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman
Paul Krugman
Paul Robin Krugman is an American economist, professor of Economics and International Affairs at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University, Centenary Professor at the London School of Economics, and an op-ed columnist for The New York Times...
took issue with the contention that Ryan's plan would reduce the deficit, alleging that it only considered proposed spending cuts and failed to take into account the tax changes. According to Krugman, Ryan's plan "would raise taxes for 95 percent of the population" but would produce a $4 trillion revenue loss over ten years because of the tax cuts for the rich. Krugman went on to label the proposed spending cuts a "sham" because they depended on making a severe cut in domestic discretionary spending without specifying the programs to be cut, and on "dismantling Medicare as we know it", which is politically unrealistic.
In response to Krugman, economist and former American Enterprise Institute
American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research is a conservative think tank founded in 1943. Its stated mission is "to defend the principles and improve the institutions of American freedom and democratic capitalism—limited government, private enterprise, individual liberty and...
scholar Ted Gayer
Ted Gayer
Ted Gayer is an American economist. He is an associate professor at Georgetown Public Policy Institute and previously served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Microeconomic Analysis at the Department of the Treasury and as a Senior Economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisers...
was more positive toward the Ryan plan. Gayer agreed that, as written, the plan would cause a $4 trillion revenue shortfall over 10 years. He noted, however, that Ryan had expressed a willingness to consider raising the rates in his tax plan. Gayer concluded that "Ryan’s vision of broad-based tax reform, which essentially would shift us toward a consumption tax, ... makes a useful contribution to this debate."
Ramesh Ponnuru
Ramesh Ponnuru
Ramesh Ponnuru is a Washington, D.C.-based Indian American columnist and a senior editor for National Review magazine. He is also a contributor to TIME magazine and WashingtonPost.com...
, writing in National Review
National Review
National Review is a biweekly magazine founded by the late author William F. Buckley, Jr., in 1955 and based in New York City. It describes itself as "America's most widely read and influential magazine and web site for conservative news, commentary, and opinion."Although the print version of the...
, argued that the revenue loss to which Krugman refers is based on a comparison between Ryan's plan and current law, which "includes middle-class tax increases...cuts in payment to Medicare providers...[and] the expansion of the Alternative Minimum Tax." He added that "current law automatically raises the tax rates to pre-Bush levels in 2013...so if you're comparing the tax level with current law, Ryan's plan represents a tax cut" and "the CBO's actual projections for the Ryan plan show a debt level in 2021 that is $4.7 trillion lower than its projections for Obama's budgets."
Rick Foster, the chief actuary of Medicare, endorsed Ryan's plan as the best way to save Medicare from going bankrupt: "I would say that the Roadmap has that potential. There is some potential for the Affordable Care Act price reductions, although I'm a little less confident about that."
Political campaigns
Ryan was first elected to the House in 1998 when two-term incumbent Mark NeumannMark Neumann
Mark W. Neumann is a businessman and politician. He represented from 1995 to 1999. In 2010, Neumann lost a bid to become the Republican nominee for Governor of Wisconsin. Neumann is currently a candidate for U.S...
retired from his seat in order to make an unsuccessful bid for the Senate. Ryan won both a Republican primary over 29-year-old pianist Michael J. Logan of Twin Lakes
Twin Lakes, Wisconsin
Twin Lakes is a village in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,124 at the 2000 census.Lake Elizabeth and Lake Mary are the twin lakes.-Geography:Twin Lakes is located at ....
, and the general election against Democratic opponent Lydia Spottswood. Ryan successfully defended his seat against Democratic challenger Jeffrey C. Thomas in 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006.
2008
Ryan defeated Democratic nominee Marge Krupp by a wide margin in the 2008 general election.2010
Ryan defeated both Democratic nominee John Heckenlively and Libertarian nominee Joseph Kexel by a wide margin in the 2010 general election.Electoral history
| Year | Office | District | Democrat | Republican | Other | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Lydia Spottswood | 43% | Paul Ryan | 57% | ||
| 2000 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Jeffrey Thomas | 33% | Paul Ryan | 67% | ||
| 2002 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Jeffrey Thomas | 31% | Paul Ryan | 67% | ||
| 2004 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Jeffrey Thomas | 33% | Paul Ryan | 65% | ||
| 2006 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Jeffrey Thomas | 37% | Paul Ryan | 63% | ||
| 2008 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | Marge Krupp | 35% | Paul Ryan | 64% | Joseph Kexel (L) | 1% |
| 2010 | U.S. House of Representatives | Wisconsin 1st District | John Heckenlively | 30% | Paul Ryan | 68% | Joseph Kexel (L) | 2% |
Personal life
Ryan married Janna Little, a tax attorney, in December 2001. The Ryans live in Janesville with their three children: Elizabeth Anne Ryan, Charles Wilson Ryan, and Samuel Lowery Ryan.Ryan is a practicing Catholic and is a member of St. John Vianney’s Parish.
Ryan is a fitness freak and promotes fitness as a daily routine for today's youth. He works out actively using the famous P90x fitness program.
External links
- Congressman Paul Ryan official U.S. House site
- Paul Ryan for U.S. Congress official campaign site
- A Roadmap for America's Future Paul Ryan's alternative to the United States federal budget
- Health Care Reform: The Long-Term Perspective at Cato InstituteCato InstituteThe Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
, June 2009 - Monitor Breakfast conversation on medicare voucher reform at Christian Science Monitor, December 2010