I think you may be right. Another possibility is that they may have made Ryan a sacrificial lamb in order to preserve the political viability of others like Martinez and Rubio who they may want to run in 2016 or beyond and see as better overall candidates. They surely don’t want them associated with a blowout loss.
I sure hope we are wrong, but I do think this pick turns the election sharply Obama’s favor. Romney may wind up winning fewer states than McCain, and I never would have thought that possible in this cycle.
I disagree with just about all of your theories.
By picking Ryan, Romney has defined the election to be focused on the economy, federal spending, and debt. That’s what matters most to the largest number of people, R, D, or I, liberal or conservative. It will force Obama to run on the foremost issue on which his record can be judged, and on which he fails miserably.
The Democrats would hae loved to make this election one of Rubio’s past and parentage, or about some bombastic comment made by Christie in the heat of passion. Instead, Romney has them outsmarted and outmaneuvered right from the get go, and this election will be centered on the #1 issue that matters most.
That remains to be seen, but I rather suspect you're right. The Republicans will not be allowed by MSM to run any sort of campaign such as they had envisioned. The MSM will make sure the "rules" always favor the Democrats, and they will give the 'Rat memes favorable treatment and free propagation.