\u201cI hate to say this, but if Ryan wants to run for national office again, he\u2019ll probably have to wash the stench of Romney off of him,\u201d Craig Robinson, a former political director of the Republican Party of Iowa, told The New York Times on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Coming from a resident of Iowa, a state where people are polite even to soybeans, this was a powerful condemnation of the Republican nominee.<\/p>\n
Though Ryan had already decided to distance himself from the floundering Romney campaign, he now feels totally uninhibited. Reportedly, he has been marching around his campaign bus, saying things like, \u201cIf Stench calls, take a message\u201d and \u201cTell Stench I\u2019m having finger sandwiches with Peggy Noonan and will text him later.\u201d<\/p>\n
Even before the stench article appeared, there was a strong sign that Ryan was freeing himself from the grips of the Romney campaign. It began after his disastrous appearance on Friday before AARP in New Orleans. Ryan delivered his remarks in the style dictated by his Romney handlers: Stand behind the lectern, read the speech as written and don\u2019t stray from the script.<\/p>\n
Ryan brought his 78-year-old mother with him and introduced her to the audience, which is usually a sure crowd pleaser.<\/p>\n
But when Ryan began talking about repealing \u201cObamacare\u201d because he said it would harm seniors, one woman in the crowd shouted, \u201cLie!\u201d Another shouted \u201cLiar!\u201d and the crowd booed Ryan lustily.<\/p>\n
Who boos a guy in front of his 78-year-old mother? Other 78-year-old mothers.<\/p>\n