Paul Ryan (politician)
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| Paul Ryan | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 3, 1999 |
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| Preceded by | Mark Neumann |
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| Born | January 29, 1970 Janesville, Wisconsin |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Janna Ryan |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Paul D. Ryan, Jr. (born January 29, 1970) is an American politician and Congressman from Wisconsin. He is a member of the Republican Party, and represents Wisconsin's 1st congressional district (map) in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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[edit] Personal life
Born and raised in Janesville, Paul Ryan is a fifth-generation Wisconsin native. Currently serving his fifth term in Congress, Paul is known a reformer in the areas of entitlement programs, fiscal issues and health care policy.
Paul is a graduate of Joseph A. Craig High School in Janesville and earned a degree in economics and political science from Miami University in Ohio.
He is the Ranking Member of the House Budget Committee, where he works to bring fiscal discipline and accountability to the federal government. He also serves as a senior member on the House Ways and Means Committee, which has jurisdiction over revenue matters including Social Security, health care and tax policy.
Paul and his wife Janna live in Janesville, WI with their children, daughter Liza and sons Charlie and Sam. He is a member of St. John Vianney’s Parish.
[edit] Political career
Ryan worked as an aide to U.S. Senator Bob Kasten in 1992 and as legislative director for Sam Brownback of Kansas from 1995 to 1997. He served as a speech writer to Jack Kemp and William Bennett.
He was first elected to the House in 1998 after two-term incumbent Mark Neumann made an unsuccessful bid for the Senate. In the Republican primary that year, he faced 35-year old beer distributor Brian Morello after former State Sen. George Petak withdrew from the race [1]. Ryan was expected to face a strong challenge from Petak, but he pressed Petak on his 1996 vote for tax increases pertaining to the new Miller Park in Milwaukee, which is mostly outside of the 1st district.
In the general election, he faced Democrat Lydia Spottswood, a registered nurse and four-term Kenosha City Councilwoman. Spottswood had come within nearly 4000 votes of defeating Neumann in 1996, and she was better funded in 1998. However, Ryan defeated Spottswood by a surprisingly comfortable margin, 57%-42%. He was likely aided by the landslide reelection victory of Governor Tommy Thompson.
He defeated perennial candidate Jeffrey C. Thomas in 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006 by margins of 65%-34%, 67%-31%, 60%-38%, and 63%-37%.
On February 17, 2008, Ryan was noted as a possible Vice Presidential candidate for presumptive Republican Presidential nominee Senator John McCain by journalist Robert Novak on NBC's Meet the Press.
[edit] Committee Assignments
The congressman is the Ranking Member of the U.S. House Committee on the Budget and is a member of the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee. Ryan also currently serves on the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means and its Subcommittee on Social Security.
[edit] Roadmap for America's Future
On May 21, 2008, Ryan introduced "A Roadmap For America's Future." Below is an excerpt from a statement Ryan made on the Roadmap. More details on the Roadmap can be found on its website: http://www.americanroadmap.org
"America faces a choice between two fiscal and economic futures.
In one, ever-rising levels of government spending overwhelm the Federal budget and the U.S. economy with crushing burdens of debt and higher taxes. It is a future in which America’s best century is the past century.
The second future is one in which the principles that created America’s freedom and prosperity are restored. It is the path set out in my plan, A Roadmap for America’s Future.
Currently, we are on a path of unsustainable Federal spending. The main problem is the looming crisis of entitlement spending. The well-intentioned social insurance strategies of the past century – particularly Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid – are headed toward financial collapse.
Not only will these programs grow themselves into extinction, they will immensely burden our economy and budget – piling massive amounts of debt on future generations, crippling our ability to compete in the international marketplace, and dramatically reducing Americans’ standards of living.
We can and must set a different course. But the time for talk has passed. We need a plan."
[edit] Electoral history
- 2006 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 1st District
- Paul Ryan (R) (inc.), 160,033 votes, 63%
- Jeffrey Thomas (D), 95,303 votes, 37%
- 2004 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 1st District
- Paul Ryan (R) (inc.), 65%
- Jeffrey Thomas (D), 33%
- 2002 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 1st District
- Paul Ryan (R) (inc.), 67%
- Jeffrey Thomas (D), 31%
- 2000 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 1st District
- Paul Ryan (R) (inc.), 67%
- Jeffrey Thomas (D), 33%
- 1998 Race for U.S. House of Representatives — 1st District
- Paul Ryan (R), 57%
- Lydia Spottswood (D), 43%
[edit] External links
- Congressman Paul Ryan official U.S. House website
- Paul Ryan for U.S. Congress official campaign site
- Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
- Voting record maintained by The Washington Post
- Campaign finance reports and data at the Federal Election Commission
- Campaign contributions at OpenSecrets.org
- Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
- Issue positions and quotes at On The Issues
- Profile at SourceWatch Congresspedia
| Preceded by Mark Neumann |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Wisconsin's 1st congressional district 1999 – present |
Incumbent |
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