The news of the weekend was, of course, Mitt Romney’s announcement that Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin would be his running mate.
Pundits on the left and the right spent the last day analyzing and gauging Romney’s election chances with Ryan now on the ticket. Here’s what people in the DMV had to say:
-The Not Larry Sabato blog said Ryan’s proposed budget would be a disaster in Virginia because of its dramatic cuts to federal spending over the next decade that would cost Northern Virginia tens of thousands of jobs.
“But there is no swing state where he is a bigger liability then here in Virginia and that's probably why Romney is bringing him here first.”
-The Post writes that Romney’s selection of Ryan for VP could make things tricky for Republican Senate candidate George Allen. Allen has refused to take a firm position on Medicare reform, which Ryan proposes to turn into a voucher-like system in his budget plan.
-The Examiner writes that the Romney/Ryan ticket is bad for D.C. because both Republicans are either silent or oppose statehood and full voting rights for D.C. residents.
-Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling said:
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“I applaud Mitt Romney’s choice of Congressman Paul Ryan as the next vice president of the United States. Congressman Ryan understands what it is going to take to get our debt and deficit under control and how to work with Congress to put in place Mitt Romney’s policies, which will jump start our economy so that more Virginians, and Americans, can find jobs and return to work.”
Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said:
“Paul Ryan brings to Mitt Romney’s candidacy a strong commitment to end Medicare as we know it. The disastrous Romney-Ryan plan would take us back to the same failed policies of the Bush years that drove our country into recession and record job losses. Their plan hurts middle class families, encouraging companies to ship jobs overseas instead of creating them here at home, while cutting taxes for millionaires at the same time that it cuts education opportunities for students.”
IN OTHER NEWS
* Romney seemingly endorsed Virignia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling for governor, then backed away from it and took a more neutral position in the heated GOP primary between Bolling and the state’s AG Ken Cuccinelli.
* The Maryland Senate voted to pass Gov. O’Malley’s legislation to expand gambling in the state. Here’s a breakdown of how the senators voted. The bill will now go to the House of Delegates, where it is expected to face a tougher battle.
* Baltimore City delegates pushed Caesars Entertainment executives about the company’s plans to employ local residents.
* Maryland residents can now register to vote online.
* Jeff Schapiro of the Richmond Times-Dispatch thinks Gov. Bob McDonnell was just a bit too earnest throughout the whole vice-presidential selection process.
* A state agency in Massachusetts recently ruled that Uber’s metering system is illegal, threatening the driving service’s operations in Boston.
* A Maryland court on Friday upheld a petition forcing a referendum this fall on the state’s congressional map.
