Posted by As I pointed out in Election 2024: Year of the Write-In Candidate, the responsible, conscience-driven vote for President must be a write-in vote. My conscience is clear: Paul Ryan is a more-than reasonable choice for President of the United States.
Respect for the Legislative Process
Paul Ryan was elected to the House of Representatives in 1998 at the age of 29. He served as both Representative and House Speaker before stepping aside in the 2018 election. During his time in the House he sponsored 77 bills and cosponsored 855 bills. Mr. Ryan’s respect for the legislative process is revealed in his patience (resubmitting legislation he believed was important) and his humility (only four sponsored bills became law).
According to govtrak, Paul Ryan had “1,685 cosponsors ([…] 505 unique Members of Congress) on his 95 bills from Feb 24, 1999 to Oct 31, 2017” [Note: govtrak includes House Resolutions in addition to Bills in their count of sponsored bills] These cosponsors include Democrats and Republicans.
The ability to work with both major parties when developing legislation is an important executive strength that has been missing in the Oval Office for a long time. It clearly distinguishes Mr. Ryan from both current Presidential candidates. It implies that if Mr. Ryan is President, he may not resort to the unconstrained use of Executive Orders that Presidents have used to try to “implement” executive policies.
Renewing the American Idea
In 2014, a midterm election year, Paul Ryan wrote, and Twelve, Hachette Book Group published, The Way Forward: Renewing the American Idea. This was two years after he and Mitt Romney lost the 2012 presidential election to Barack Obama. This book is an appeal to Americans to rediscover what America is supposed to be. America is an idea based on ideals that both inspire and challenge us to build a solid democratic republic. Both political parties continue to fail miserably on this vision of America.
Specifically, Mr. Ryan called out the GOP after the 2012 election. “What worried me most was that the Republican Party wasn’t up to the task [of getting ‘serious about our nation’s economy and the size of our national debt’]. We’d become lazy and tired. We were complicit in creating many of the problems we now faced. We’d become just another party of big spending and big government.” (p.103)
A number of the ideas documented in the book are based on H.R.6110 – Roadmap for America’s Future Act of 2008, legislation sponsored by then Representative Ryan. The bill addresses Health Care Reform, Medicaid and Medicare Reform, Social Security Reform, a Simplified Income Tax, Business Consumption Tax reform, and Budget Enforcement guidelines. These recommendations are discussed with sufficient detail in the book to ensure the reader understands how these reforms contribute to “Renewing the American Idea”.
I encourage readers to get a copy of The Way Forward: Renewing the American Idea. Patriot Paul Ryan thinks deeply about America’s needs and how to translate them into legislation which will satisfy those needs.
It Really is About Character
This nation lacks leaders with strength, integrity, compassion, and vision. I claim Paul Ryan has these qualities; it’s who he is. The following excerpt from his book reveals his vision.
“…unexpected moments that have provided the best opportunities to work on the issues I care about: economic growth, saving Medicare and Social Security, fixing our broken health-care system, and passing on to the next generation a nation that is secure and debt-free.” (Introduction, p. ix)
This is a vision statement based on integrity and compassion. It testifies to the Paul Ryan’s strength of character since he is a member of the Republican Party. The GOP is controlled by far-right conservatives at this time. They publicly disparage people who draw on Medicare and Social Security. Mr. Ryan’s strength is truly worthy of praise. (For those retired Republicans currently receiving Medicare and Social Security benefits, be sure to thank Mr. Ryan for his hard work.)
If you’re interested in the details of Paul Ryan’s approach to implementing his vision, go to Representative Paul D. Ryan at Congress.gov and peruse the legislation he sponsored and cosponsored during his time in Congress. In particular, read H.R.6110 – Roadmap for America’s Future Act of 2008 and then buy The Way Forward: Renewing the American Idea. Paul Ryan may not be an official candidate for the 2024 election, but if this nation is lucky, he will be in 2028.
Write-In Votes
The argument that the write-in vote is a wasted vote is nonsense. If you vote your conscience, your vote is a statement: Both major parties offered evils that no one should support. A truly wasted vote is “choosing the lesser of the two evils”. It’s still a choice of evil.
If you vote for Trump, you vote for an insurrectionist who belongs in jail. If you vote for Harris, you vote for a Democratic Party tool who will continue to dismiss dialogue and compromise with the Republican Party (i.e. continue the Biden approach which requires executive orders to implement administrative policies and circumvent Congressional approval).
Send your message: neither party is serving the needs of America.
Write-in: Paul Ryan, an excellent choice for president in 2024.
Or write in the name of your choice. But don’t vote for Trump or Harris.
As always, “Good night and good luck” [Edward R. Murrow]
Joe Allen 