State GOP leaders see Ryan as strong selection for ticket

Arkansas Republican leaders said U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan will be a strong vice-presidential nominee and praised their party’s presumptive presidential nominee, Mitt Romney, for adding Ryan to the ticket.

Republican Party of Arkansas Chairman Doyle Webb said Ryan makes a good impression on those he meets and will excite conservatives “in Arkansas and throughout the nation.”

“He’s a very personable, family oriented, deep-thinking individual,” Webb said. The House budget chairman from Wisconsin “has been in Congress since 1998, and has just really developed a keen knowledge of our budget and the economic needs of our nation. ... I think it was a verygood pick. A very solid pick.”

Members of the Arkansas congressional delegation also praised the Romney-Ryan ticket.

“Governor Romney’s announcement builds the foundation for a winning team to lead our country back toeconomic prosperity,” U.S. Sen. John Boozman said in a statement Saturday afternoon. “Representative Ryan has vision for the future of America to put our nation on the path of fiscal responsibility. He is a man of experience, integrity and American values and has a proven track record of conservative success to help build momentum as we look toward November.”

U.S. Rep. Tim Griffin of Little Rock also approved.

“Mitt Romney made a great pick today - one worthy of the next President of the United States and a great way to complete America’s Comeback Team,” Griffin said in a statement. “I am honored to call Paul Ryan my friend, colleague and next-door neighbor in the House.”

Griffin and Ryan are a stone’s throw away from each other in the Longworth House Office Building.

In April, Ryan was the headlining “special guest” for a Griffin campaign fundraising reception at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington.

Tickets cost $500 to $2,000 each, an invitation stated.

Griffin praises Ryan for challenging the status quo. “He is fighting to change Washington in order to grow jobs, encourage economic growth and avert a debt crisis,” Griffin said. “Paul Ryan is a patriot who is fighting for our children’s future, and I know that as vice president, he will continue his fight to rebuild America.”

Tom Cotton, the Republican candidate in the 4th Congressional District, posted on Twitter his approval from the Hope Watermelon Festival. “I applaud Gov. Romney for choosing Paul Ryan as his running mate. Paul’s budget will put America back on the path to prosperity,” Cotton wrote.

After running the Watermelon 5K, Cotton called Ryan “a great choice.”

“I think Paul is the party’s intellectual leader on the most urgent issue confronting us - our looming debt crisis,” Cotton said in an interview. “I think that Paul’s budget is courageous and bold, in contrast to the president’s budget, which is morally and fiscally bankrupt.”

Front Section, Pages 9 on 08/12/2012

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