With vice presidential-hopeful Paul Ryan's biting speech assailing President Obama's economic policies, ideology and stimulus, Wednesday night at the in Tampa Bay, FL, proved to be the fiscal capstone of the week.
Congressman Ryan's speech was in many ways his introduction to the country, and came on the heels of remarks by several familiar GOP faces. Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged voters to select Romney—or face a world where China's power outstrips the United States'.
Senators John McCain and Rand Paul were quick to spotlight Romney's perceived strengths, too, and the current president's perceived shortcomings.
Vincent Reda, , was on the floor during Ryan's time behind the podium.
"It was electrifying," Reda said. "He hit it out of the park—he covered everything."
"He even became a little emotional," Reda added, referencing the congressman's teary-eyes upon calling his mother "his hero." Ryan lost his father when he 16-years-old.
The Democrat politicos back home in the Hudson Valley—who are waiting for their national convention next week—are not as thrilled with Ryan's rhetoric.
"I know Paul Ryan, I know him well," said representative Nita Lowey in Nyack Thursday afternoon. "He has a lovely wife, he has lovely children, he has a lovely mother—but he's just wrong. And he's wrong on all the issues."
"It's very clear that Paul Ryan wants to turn medicare into a voucher system," she added.
Lowey was flanked by U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who was visiting the Lower Hudson Valley to .
"[Ryan and Romney] don't believe in women's rights, they don't believe in LBGT rights," Gillibrand said. "It's contrary to most New Yorker's views."
--
For more Patch stories from reporters on the ground in Tampa Bay, see:
