Krugman: Paul Ryan is to policy wonkery what Carly Fiorina is to corporate management: brilliant at

[pampango]

selling himself, hopeless at actually doing the job.

Flimflam Fever

Apparently desperate Republicans are pleading with Paul Ryan to become Speaker of the House, because he’s “super, super smart.” More than anyone else in his caucus, he has the reputation of being a brilliant policy wonk.

And that tells you even more about the dire state of the GOP. After all, Ryan is to policy wonkery what Carly Fiorina is to corporate management: brilliant at selling himself, hopeless at actually doing the job. Lest we forget, his much-vaunted budget plan proved, on even superficial examination, to be a ludicrous mess of magic asterisks. His big contribution to discussion of economic policy was his stern warning to Ben Bernanke that quantitative easing would “debase the dollar”, that rising commodity prices in early 2011 presaged a surge in inflation. This guy’s delusions of expertise should be considered funny.

Yet he may indeed be the best they have.

Nonetheless, it would be a huge mistake for him personally to take the job. Where he is, he can cultivate his wonk image, with nobody in the press willing to disturb the illusion. In a direct leadership role, he’d have no place to hide.

http://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/10/08/flimflam-fever/

[gratuitous]

1. Ryan is apparently smart enough to know how little he knows

We'll see if he can resist the blandishments of the leadership folks.

[pampango]

7. "We'll see if he can resist the blandishments of the leadership folks." Will be interesting.

He may be 'smart enough' (there's a big qualifier ) to know this is bad for his political career long term, but can he resist "You are our only hope - our savior?" We shall see.

[edhopper]

14. What are you talking about

he thinks he knows more about the budget than any politician. He doesn't want the Speaker job because, 1) he wants to stay chair of the Budget Committee, and 2) speakers have a hard time running for Pres.

[Hortensis]

21. I agree. Ryan is described by an admirer as very, very conservative.

And that's in the context a uniformly strongly to extremely conservative GOP congress. In my experience, the more extremist one is, the more rigid and narrow the viewpoint.

BTW, Ryan likely is a true libertarian -- a smallish personality group that elevates personal liberty well above any other moral issue and feels responsibility only to self (with appropriate rationales for the superior virtue of their beliefs, of course). This is why the libertarian Kochs and their ilk want him to be president too.

[edhopper]

22. Yes

he worships Ayn Rand and all the crap she preached.

[left on green only]

2. Wouldn't You Just Know It?

Eddie Munster appears just in time for Halloween. I think his greatest moment in fame came that time when Mitt Romney announced him as the next president of the United States, upon that decommissioned battle ship. He's been wonking off ever since.

[Major Nikon]

3. Pretty sad when the best the GOP has to offer is ate up with the Dunning-Kruger

[1StrongBlackMan]

11. LOL ...

[Scuba]

4. Granny-starving Paul "Lyin Ryan" is a fraud, pure and simple.

[dae]

5. Could we possibly gold-plate Krugman and rename him

The Oracle!?!

[ThoughtCriminal]

6. Unfortunately, Cassandra

would be a better comparison.

[NonMetro]

8. Sure! What We Need Is This Ayn Rand Devotee Who Views The Rest Of Us As:

"PARASITES, MOOCHERS, AND LOOTERS!" as Speaker of the House!

[mmonk]

9. Bingo.

[YoungDemCA]

10. But the Very Serious People inside the Beltway love him!!!

After all, cutting taxes on rich people while cutting Social Security and Medicare benefits is a sign of fiscal responsibility and shared sacrifice, doncha know!

[lastone]

12. PAUL RYAN - SHITSTAIN EXTRAORDINAIRE

I truly hope he gets the job!

[HenryWallace]

13. I'm all for Him!

None of these guys look good when you take a closer look.

[brush]

20. Joe Biden destroyed him in the 2012 VP debate

He's been gun shy ever since of the national spotlight.

I don't blame him as his foolish budget policies have been shown to be nothing but smoke and mirrors — enough to fool most repugs but not many others.

[Spitfire of ATJ]

15. I thought his "brilliance" was all copy/paste from the Heritage Foundation.

[Qutzupalotl]

16. Paul Ryan is dreamy, in that he's delusional.

[Joe Chi Minh]

17. Good Catholic that he is, Ryan and his fellow-Catholics in the Republican

Last edited Sat Oct 10, 2015, 09:35 AM - Edit history (1)

party will surely quit it after reading reading these words of Paul to Timothy:

"Warn those who are rich in this world's goods that they are not to look down on other people: and not to set their hopes on money, which is untrustworthy, but on God, who, out of his riches, gives us all that we need for our happiness. Tell them that they are to do good, and be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to share - this is the way they can save up a good capital sum for the future, if they want to make sure of the only life that is real."

Pillaging foods banks and social security is a royal road to hell.

[TNNurse]

18. He is a terrible choice.

I do believe however that he is saying no in hopes that they will beg him. He would then be able to point that out over and over and over every time he spoke.

[lutefisk]

19. He owes his job to gerrymandering

From what I understand, he wouldn't win his district if it hadn't been gerrymandered to ensure that the Republican candidate will always win the election for the House seat.

He's a punk.

[Half-Century Man]

24. I really think that despite of the gerrymandering, his seat is vulnerable.

District 1 includes Racine, one of the hardest hit cities in Wisconsin during the recession. If only a progressive democrat would challenge him.

[uhnope]

23. he's wasn't so smart when he dreamt of this photo session as a good idea

?itok=LieDaZNk

[Spitfire of ATJ]

25. Ryan is a con man who echoes Right Wing failed policies from others....

I don't see one original idea from him.

It's Reaganomic word salad.