Ryan's Address: 'Our Rights Come from Nature and God, Not Government'

The Weekly Standard ^ | 8/11/2012 | Paul Ryan

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Thank you Governor Romney, Ann. I am deeply honored and excited to join you as your running mate.

Mitt Romney is a leader with the skills, the background and the character that our country needs at a crucial time in its history. Following four years of failed leadership, the hopes of our country, which have inspired the world, are growing dim; and they need someone to revive them. Governor Romney is the man for this moment; and he and I share one commitment: we will restore the dreams and greatness of this country.

I want you to meet my family. My wife Janna, our daughter Liza, and our sons, Charlie and Sam.

I am surrounded by the people I love, and I have been asked by Governor Romney to serve the country I love.

Janesville, Wisconsin is where I was born and raised, and I never really left it. It’s our home now.

For the last 14 years, I have proudly represented Wisconsin in Congress. There, I have focused on solving the problems that confront our country, and turning ideas into action; and action into solutions.

I am committed, in heart and mind, to putting that experience to work in a Romney Administration. This is a crucial moment in the life of our nation; and it is absolutely vital that we select the right man to lead America back to prosperity and greatness.

That man is standing next to me. His name is Mitt Romney. And he will be the next president of the United States

My dad died when I was young. He was a good and decent man. I still remember a couple of things he would say that have really stuck with me. "Son you are either part of the problem or part of the solution."

Regrettably, President Obama has become part of the problem,...and Mitt Romney is the solution.

The other thing my dad would say is that every generation of Americans leaves their children better off. That's the American legacy.

Sadly, for the first time in our history, we are on a path which will undo that legacy. That is why we need new leadership to become part of the solution – new leadership to restore prosperity, economic growth, and jobs.

It is our duty to save the American Dream for our children, and theirs.

And I believe there is no person in America who is better prepared – because of his experience; because of the principles he holds; and because of his achievements and excellence in so many different arenas – to lead America at this point in its history.

Let me say a word about the man Mitt Romney will replace. No one disputes President Obama inherited a difficult situation. And, in his first 2 years, with his party in complete control of Washington, he passed nearly every item on his agenda. But that didn’t make things better.

In fact, we find ourselves in a nation facing debt, doubt and despair.

• This is the worst economic recovery in 70 years. Unemployment has been above 8 percent for more than three years, the longest run since the Great Depression. Families are hurting.
• We have the largest deficits and the biggest federal government since WWII.
• Nearly 1 out of 6 Americans are in poverty--the worst rate in a generation. Moms and dads are struggling to make ends meet.

• Household incomes have dropped by more than $4,000 over the past four years.

Whatever the explanations, whatever the excuses, this is a record of failure.

President Obama, and too many like him in Washington, have refused to make difficult decisions because they are more worried about their next election than they are about the next generation. We might have been able to get away with that before, but not now. We’re in a different, and dangerous, moment. We're running out of time -- and we can't afford 4 more years of this.

Politicians from both parties have made empty promises which will soon become broken promises--with painful consequences--if we fail to act now.

I represent a part of America that includes inner cities, rural areas, suburbs and factory towns. Over the years I have seen and heard from a lot from families, from those running small businesses, and from people who are in need. But what I have heard lately troubles me the most. There is something different in their voice and in their words. What I hear from them are diminished dreams, lowered expectations, uncertain futures.

I hear some people say that this is just "the new normal." High unemployment, declining incomes and crushing debt is not a new normal. It's the result of misguided policies. And next January, our economy will begin a comeback with the Romney Plan for a Stronger Middle Class that will lead to more jobs and more take home pay for working Americans.

America is on the wrong track; but Mitt Romney and I will take the right steps, in the right time, to get us back on the right track!

I believe my record of getting things done in Congress will be a very helpful complement to Governor Romney’s executive and private sector success outside Washington. I have worked closely with Republicans as well as Democrats to advance an agenda of economic growth, fiscal discipline, and job creation.

I’m proud to stand with a man who understands what it takes to foster job creation in our economy, someone who knows from experience, that if you have a small business—you did build that.

At Bain Capital, he launched new businesses and he turned around failing ones – companies like Staples, Bright Horizons and Sports Authority, just to name a few. Mitt Romney created jobs and showed he knows how a free economy works.

At the Olympics, he took a failing enterprise and made it the pride of our entire nation.

As governor of Massachusetts, he worked with Democrats and Republicans to balance budgets with no tax increases, lower unemployment, increase income and improve people’s lives.

In all of these things, Mitt Romney has shown himself to be a man of achievement, excellence and integrity.

Janna and I tell Liza, Charlie and Sam that America is a place where, if you work hard and play by the rules, you can get ahead.

We Americans look at one another's success with pride, not resentment, because we know, as more Americans work hard, take risks, and succeed, more people will prosper, our communities will benefit, and individual lives will be improved and uplifted.

But America is more than just a place...it's an idea. It's the only country founded on an idea. Our rights come from nature and God, not government. We promise equal opportunity, not equal outcomes.

This idea is founded on the principles of liberty, freedom, free enterprise, self-determination and government by consent of the governed.

This idea is under assault. So, we have a critical decision to make as a nation.

We are on an unsustainable path that is robbing America of our freedom and security. It doesn't have to be this way.

The commitment Mitt Romney and I make to you is this:

We won't duck the tough issues...we will lead!

We won't blame others...we will take responsibility!

We won't replace our founding principles...we will reapply them!

We will honor you, our fellow citizens, by giving you the right and opportunity to make the choice:

1. What kind of country do we want to have?

2. What kind of people do we want to be? We can turn this thing around. Real solutions can be delivered. But, it will take leadership. And the courage to tell you the truth.

   Mitt Romney is this kind of leader. I'm excited for what lies ahead and I'm thrilled to be a part of America's Comeback Team. And together, we will unite America and get this done.

   Thank you.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Here's the prepared text of Paul Ryan's address in Norfolk, Virginia, via The Weekly Standard.

For conservatives, the WS has the right lead: our rights come from nature and from God, not government.

[jeffc]

Well, at least someone in government gets it (I hope he really believes it....).

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Certainly refreshing to have the VP candidate paraphrasing the Declaration of Independence!

[driftless2]

Ha, ha, I was just over at that congregaton of certified loonies known as DummyUnderground. One of the wackos posted Willard’s words about where our rights come from, and a whole chorus of the nutjobs started howling and cackling about Romney being wrong. Then some of the not quite-as-loony Dummies corrected the utter lunatics with a few things such as Romney was 100% correct. Your rights do come from God (or nature) and are inalienable. Many of the nutjobs were firmly convinced that government gives you your rights.

[Dilbert San Diego]

Of course, the liberals will take exception to mention of God. They will question if Ryan believes in separation of church and state and that whole ball of wax liberals talk about.

Liberals will also object to the overtones that he’s quoting the Declaration of Independence. Liberals believe that the Founding Fathers were bad men because they allowed slavery, didn’t give women the right to vote, and did not celebrate homosexual diversity in the manner which today’s liberals want to celebrate.

[xkaydet65]

So the # 2 man on the ticket puts it out plainly on Day 1. There are two visions of America. Which do we want? My greatest fear is the way too many will answer that question. 180 years after he first posed the danger, we get the chance to prove de Toqueville wrong. Will we?

[COBOL2Java]

My dad died when I was young. He was a good and decent man.

Coronary artery disease, at 55. Same with his grandfather and great-grandfather, both in their 50s. Let's hope & pray that modern medical advances will prevent genetic destiny!

[HollyB]

Thank goodness this isn’t about liberals, but about gettng our country back on track!

[MamaTexan]

Totally amazing! A politician that 'gets it'!

[and the way he stuck the gig in against the 'new normal' was just priceless]

[Daffynition]

Perhaps Mr. Ryan will come to New Haven, CT and speak to this issue with Mayor De Stephano.

"Sometimes just because something is legal doesn't make it right," DeStefano says in the aftermath of the incident where a prominent New Haven attorney who was arrested Tuesday night for carrying a pistol in his waistband when he went to a showing of the "The Dark Knight Rises" .

[Salvation]

What Catholic Vote said about Paul Ryan yesterday:

 

Paul Ryan, Representative from Wisconsin's 1st District  

Life
Co-sponsored the No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.

Voted to amend the health care law so that no federal funds may be used to pay for any part of any healthcare plan that offers abortion coverage.

Voted for the Abortion Pain Bill and the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act.

Voted to prohibit partial birth abortion.

Marriage
Voted for a resolution proposing a constitutional amendment that would define marriage as the union between one man and one woman.

Voted against repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.

Religious liberty
Voted for the Religious Liberty Protection Act of 1999.

On the HHS mandate: “This is much, much bigger than about contraception. This is about religious freedom, First Amendment rights, and how this progressive philosophy of fungible rights of a living breathing constitution really clashes and collides with these core rights that we built our society and country around.”

Embryonic life
Voted against the Stem Cell Research Act of 2007, which would have required the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to conduct and support research on embryonic stem cells.

Voted in favor of developing methods to produce stem cells without using human embryos.

School choice
Voted in favor for school vouchers in Washington, D.C.

[Common Sense 101]

Good speech... Now if he and Mittens can get Bonehead and Mumbles McConnel on board maybe we have a chance. Big “if”, but it looks like more of a possibility today than it did yesterday.

[kevinm13]

Excellent! now lets make 0bama a one-term President like his buddy Jimmah Carter.

[PGalt]

Certainly refreshing to have the VP candidate paraphrasing the Declaration of Independence!

Yes it is! Thanks for posting, c_I_c.

[NEW YORKCITYGOPMAN]

and did not celebrate homosexual diversity in the manner which today’s liberals want to celebrate.

Doubt the Founders even gave homosexuality a thought!

[Dilbert San Diego]

Yes, this isn’t all about the liberals. I hope and pray that the election results in November will have the liberals being put back in their place.

What we have seen during the last four years, is what happens when the liberals are in charge.

And it’s not all about the presidential election. There are many important Senate races up for grabs on November 6th.

[Rapscallion]

Well, at least someone in government gets it (I hope he really believes it....).

Or at least holds this Truth to be self-evident...

[Rapscallion]

Many of the nutjobs were firmly convinced that government gives you your rights.

So much for liberal unionized public education....

[Scott from the Left Coast]

It is as clear as it can be...if a majority re-elects Obama then America has chosen a socialist future, consciously. As Europe has shown, there is no road back from that choice.

[Obama_Is_Sabotaging_America]

Paul Ryan makes Oblame-a look like an amateur. With this choice, the Tea Party will come out of 'flat line' mode for Romney, and will also carry positively with the Midwest because Ryan appeals to blue collars.

The Dems talk about 'no foreign policy experience' on this team.. I argue that THAT IS WHAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE, because Oblame-a hasn't lead or even lead from behind. His hands have NEVER been on the steering wheel thoughout the last 4 years; Worst, he let Afghanistan and Iraq decline without any proactive intervention. Romney has been friends with Netanyahu for over 40 years and that is very important with the Iran situation only worsening.