Pelosi says Ryan pick makes it easier for Dems to take House
(CNN) – Mitt Romney's pick of Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate will give Democrats a better shot at retaking control of the House of Representatives, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, said in an interview airing Sunday.
Pelosi, a Democrat, said Ryan's plan to overhaul Medicare was a nonstarter among senior citizens, meaning Democrats are better poised to assume the majority in the lower chamber.
- Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker
- Check out the CNN Electoral Map and Calculator and game out your own strategy for November.
"On August 11, when Gov. Romney chose Ryan, that was the pivotal day," Pelosi told CNN chief political correspondent Candy Crowley on "State of the Union." "That is the day things really changed. We were on a path. I would have said to you then we were dead even. Well, the momentum is very much with us, the Medicare issue in this campaign."
Ryan, who chairs the House Budget Committee, has proposed a plan that would allow private insurers to compete with traditional Medicare on an exchange. Democrats, who label the proposal a "voucher system," claim the plan would effectively end Medicare. Republicans say such steps are necessary to ensure the health care program for senior citizens remains solvent. They also point out that Ryan's proposed measures wouldn't affect current Medicare recipients.
On Sunday, Pelosi said the issue was at the forefront of voters' minds and that her party retained the upper hand.
"We have been saying there are three important issues in this campaign. And in alphabetical order, they are Medicare, Medicare, Medicare," the California representative said.
A CNN/ORC poll taken earlier this month indicated Medicare was among the top three most important economic issues for voters, after unemployment and the federal deficit. And a New York Times survey last week showed a significant majority of voters wanted Medicare to remain unchanged, rather than shift to a system like the one Ryan has proposed.
Following his choice of Ryan as running mate, Romney has used Medicare often in his campaign speeches, claiming President Barack Obama took money reserved for Medicare to pay for his sweeping health care law (a claim that has been rated "false" by several fact checkers). While Romney hasn't said which specific elements of Ryan's budget plan he would support as president, he has indicated that many of Ryan's measures would play a part in his own White House budget proposals.
The push by Pelosi and fellow Democrats to win back the House comes after the party lost control of the chamber in the 2010 midterm elections. In order to regain a majority, Democrats are aggressively trying to pick up 25 seats in November's election.
Pelosi said Sunday that without a Democratic majority in the House, legislative gridlock would persist on Capitol Hill, even if Obama is re-elected.
"You'll see more of the same, because it's really important for the public to know that the Republican obstruction of President Obama's jobs bills, and whatever he was advancing, their obstruction is their agenda. They really don't believe in a public role," Pelosi said.
A second-term president, Pelosi said, wouldn't change the legislative dynamic if Republicans remain in the majority. And a Mitt Romney presidency, the minority leader indicated, was unthinkable.
"Mitt Romney is not going to be president of the United States," she said.
Watch State of the Union with Candy Crowley Sundays at 9am ET. For the latest from State of the Union click here.
From CNN Politics
- Grand jury indictments, explained
- 10 Cards Charging 0% Interest Until 2024
- US flying surveillance drones farther south over Black Sea after collision with Russian fighter jet, officials say
- US to send Patriot missile systems and tanks to Ukraine faster than originally planned
- Bruce Springsteen, Gladys Knight among group honored at the White House
- Untitled
It is funny that Rmoney and Ryan call President Obama a liar.....That is the first thing a liar will do, call everyone else a liar!
Pelosi is absolutely right. The lying rubberface is yet another big mistake for the GOP. A few of the brains in GOP
must ask themselves every day how they could choose Romney and his lying sidekick. They are now paying for it.
After the loss there will be some major housecleaning in the GOP.
The reason the GOP isn't trotting out Bush and Cheney to help Mittens 'n' Munster is because it would remind everyone that what M 'n' M are proposing are the exact same economic, military and foreign policies that are PROVEN FAILURES.
Obama/Biden 2012 = The only sane choice
Vote for me for President! I promise to end the partisan bickering, work across the aisle to end unemployment, strengthen Social Security and Medicare, make people of all faiths (including atheists) feel at home in America, solve the immigration problem, strengthen our military, restore respect for America around the world, and cut all taxes! It's easy when you don't have to run on your record.
The GOTP has 2 goals! Obstruct/gridlock Obama out of the White House & Never-Under-Any-Circumstances raise taxes on the 1%! They even signed a pledge! If it seems unfair to throw the economy & the middleclass under the bus in the process of making Obama 1 term, it is not their concern! They're doing their job: Protecting the 1%! We Are in this together & must work together to get back on track & we need to vote in leaders who will work for our benefit, Not make policies at our expense! All I'm reading & hearing from the Grand Old Tea Party benefits the few at the expense of the many! Romney is on talkradio telling people to vote for him & he'll see to it that we'll have a stupendous economy & 12 million jobs available, like he has them up his sleeve right now, just waiting to hand them out! He wont say though, how he'll go about pulling off this feat! I don't need high handed promises, I need real solutions & a government that works in a bi-partisan fashion to implement them!! Obama Nov 6!
Pelosi has been the greatest thing ever to boost Halloween sales.
Trust him.
The GOTP has 2 goals! Obstruct/gridlock Obama out of the White House & Never-Under-Any-Circu.mstances raise taxes on the 1%! They even signed a pledge! If it seems unfair to throw the economy & the middleclass under the bus in the process of making Obama 1 term, it is not their concern! They're doing their job: Protecting the 1%! We Are in this together & must work together to get back on track & we need to vote in leaders who will work for our benefit, Not make policies at our expense! All I'm reading & hearing from the Grand Old Tea Party benefits the few at the expense of the many! Romney is on talkradio telling people to vote for him & he'll see to it that we'll have a stupendous economy & 12 million jobs available, like he has them up his sleeve right now, just waiting to hand them out! He wont say though, how he'll go about pulling off this feat! I don't need high handed promises, I need real solutions & a government that works in a bi-partisan fashion to implement them!! Obama Nov 6!
How ironic; Nanny Pelosi is actually the main reason the Libs don't stand a chance in Hades of even coming close to taking back the House. We all know what the House would be like with her in charge; so keep spewing you venom Nanny.
"Mitt Romney's pick of Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate will give Democrats a better shot at retaking control of the House of Representatives, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, said in an interview airing Sunday."
Yes, and given old Prunella's tenuous grasp of reality, I hope the shock of being wrong drives her to self-immolation.
We all know the GOP just IS NOT on America's side. They have done everything they could to SABOTAGE our economy so they could claim "It's all Obama's fault!"
But we know better, the GOP has only create ONE job, $1.5 MILLION to a right-wing K Street lawyer.
I'm not voting for anyone who has to hide his tax returns.
This woman has no shame and is power hungry! She is a vile, disgusting typical politician and it is people like here why this country is so messed up!
A San Fran-Freako values in Washington which this country as rejected and yet the Dems continue to embrace.
Hey obama, your dog pelosi is barking again,you need to shut that dog up or we'll call animal control.
pkrbkr-We need a Democratic House, Democratic Senate and Democratic Presidency to get things done for the average American!
-----------
We had that for the 1st 2 yrs of Obama's presidency. Now the country is suffering badly economically, the world is in turmoil, gas prices, food, bills, unemployment esp among the minorities that the Dems claim to support, HAVE GONE UP, while our income had gone down since 2008 and there is no end in sight as the people most hurt by "a Democratic House, Democratic Senate and Democratic Presidency" are blacks, hispanic, the elderly and most vulnerable of our society.
So HOW'S THAT WORKING OUT FOR US?
"the definition of insantiy is doing the same thing and expecting different results"
And Pelosi is good for the Republicans....with her "Leadership", the Republicans regained the majority in the House.....keep running your mouth Pelosi....it only helps the GOP!
As I watch and listen to Paul Ryan, he reminds me of the men my Father cautioned me about – snake-oil salesmen who try to manipulate and confuse, who have great difficulty with the truth and who smile to your face while they are actually trying to take advantage of you and take you "down behind the barn." Dad was a very smart man!
I would like nothing more than to see the democrats take back the House, and get the troublemakers OUT and people who are willing to work IN, but the hatred for this president doesn't allow common sense from some people. IF their hatred is their guide to kill Medicare and so many other needed programs, then go ahead and vote for this R/R ticket, but as the Rev. Al Sharpton said "this election is NOT about Obama, it's about YOUR mama" and if you want to take care of your mothers (and you will if they are elected), then let hatred be your guide.
The game is over for Romney and the Repubs.
Latest polls show Obama leading by over 120 electoral votes.
This is an insurmountable lead.
.
Obama has a double-digit lead in PA, now securely in the Obama column.
When there is a political swing to one side... there is always a backlash! The tea bag people were voted in as a reaction to the overspending of GW, and are now about to get voted out en-mass! Obstructionism is no excuse for government and when we are in a job crisis, it is no time to cut salaries! When the debt ceiling needs to be raised it is no time to block it creating a reduction in our credit rating, which will cost us more!
Ryan's a nasty piece of work. No way I want him anywhere near Congress, let alone the White House.
He'll be this year's GOP Palin - although Romney himself is reason enough to NOT vote for the GOP. Seriously, that's the best they could do? The GOP just need to cease existing. They're a joke.
As if anybody realy listens to the wicked witch of the west. She has no credibility & is nothing but a political hack. Insider trading, illegal immigrants as nanny, etc. I like all the people claiming all the polls show Obama is undefeatable, doesnt seem that Obama is listening or paying attention, because even as the mideast & economy goes down the toilet, hes still out there campaigning ( Kind reminds me of Nero with his fiddle in Rome). Today hes in Ohio instead of the WH. 3 days in 3 months is all hes spent working in the WH in the last 3 months.
Anyone who votes for a Republican is either stupid, self hating or wealthy!
The deciding factor in the elections is simple. The people who will win will be the ones who are perceived as being the "least corrupt"... we all know they are all corrupt, we just have to try to decide which ones seem to be be "less corrupt". Good luck....Nancy.