Romney taps Paul Ryan as running mate
GOP's presidential candidate names Wisconsin congressman as his potential vice president
WASHINGTON – Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said on Saturday he has chosen Congressman Paul Ryan as his vice presidential running mate, a move that will bring the debate over how to reduce government spending and debt to the forefront of the race for the White House.
Romney, the presumptive Republican nominee, announced that he has tapped the House of Representatives Budget Committee chairman at an event at the retired battleship USS Wisconsin - coincidentally named for Ryan's home state.
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"His leadership begins with character and values. ... Paul Ryan works in Washington but his roots remain in Janesville, Wisconsin," Romney said.
Romney said Ryan, 42, "has become an intellectual leader of the Republican Party," and stressed that their campaign will focus on ways to create jobs, protect Medicare and Social Security, and repeal the health care law enacted under Democratic President Barack Obama.
Romney and Ryan (Photo: AP)
The announcement marked the end a months-long search by Romney for a running mate to join him in facing Obama and Vice President Joe Biden in the Nov. 6 election.
His choice of running mate is a bold one and comes after polls this week showed him falling slightly behind Obama in what is still a close race, in a campaign that is focused largely on the weak US economy.
Ryan is considered a rising star in the Republican Party. The Wisconsin congressman currently heads the House Budget Committee.
He bas been serving in Congress since 1999, and is best known this session for his controversial budget plan that includes an overhaul of Medicare.
Romney's Twitter announcement
Ryan's selection also immediately draws attention to a budget plan he proposed as House budget chairman that would include controversial cuts in government health programs for the elderly and poor.
"We're in a different and dangerous moment. We're running out of time and we can't afford four more years of this," Ryan told the crowd. "Politicians from both parties have made empty promises which will soon become broken promises with painful consequences if we fail to act now."
He drew his biggest reaction, saying: "Our rights come from nature and God, not from government."
Reuters contributed to this report
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