Starting in Ohio

Ryan is a congressman from Wisconsin, but he says he wanted Ohio to lead-off his campaign swing, for two reasons:  It’s crucial to winning the November election…and…he has fond memories of going to college at  Miami University of Ohio.   

Capacity crowd

Twenty-four-hundred invitees, many of them area Republican officials and activists, crowded into the Walsh University basketball auditorium for what the Romney/Ryan campaign calls a “victory rally.”  The Green High School band played in the background to a loud and enthusiastic crowd -- many of whom think it’s important that Ryan came here so soon.

Janet Creighton is the former mayor of Canton and a Stark County commissioner who literally wears her party symbol on her sleeves. She says Republicans know that the winning presidential ticket in every election but one for the past 32 years has won Stark County.  And she says Ryan coming here so quickly after getting the VP nomination shows that.  “…he was tapped on Saturday, he’s here already.  That’s not by accident.  They know how important Stark County is.  We are the bellwether.   As Stark County goes, so goes Ohio, and so goes the nation.”   

The candidate speaks

Ryan touted what he called the new vision that’s the core of the Romney campaign. “The contrasts in this election could not be clearer.  We can stick with the path that we are on; a path of debt, a path of doubt, a path of decline—the path President Obama has put us on.  Or, we can get back in business, reapply our principles, and save the American idea.  It is very clear.

What supporters came to hear

 Pat Lanzer and Noreen Weisenburger drove up from Homeworth in Columbiana County to hear what Ryan had to say.  And for them, his talk of a new direction for the country was a major draw.…Oh yeah, absolutely it’s important.  It’s honestly about time [for change]…”  

Energy policy

Lloyd Burt of Canton says the Romney/ Ryan ticket’s vision is important to him, too. Even more critical is support for aggressive energy development. “I believe the president and his people have a war on all forms of conventional energy, and I now from my daughter being a mining engineer the safety that goes into conventional energy production.  And I feel that the President’s energy policy is going to bankrupt this country…”  

Medicare

Not everybody who came to Walsh University was on board with the Romney/Ryan vision.    Demitrius St. John of Canton organized a group of a dozen or so protestors who stood along East Maple Street, across from the Walsh campus.  He, and they, are particularly concerned about Paul Ryan’s ideas on Medicare.  “…well, you know…they want to turn Medicare into a voucher system.  I mean, even though they say they’re going to cover people that are 55 and over now the way it is now, we have no reason to believe this…” 

China

But inside, Ryan wasn’t apologizing. He challenged President Obama on Medicare, jobs and especially on trade with China, which many in the region believe has cost them jobs. “…Free trade is a powerful tool for peace and prosperity.  But our trading partners need to play by the rules.  And this challenge focuses on China.  They steal our intellectual property rights.  They block access to their markets.  They manipulate their currency.  President Obama promised to stop these practices.  He said he would go to the mat with China.  Instead, they’re treating him like a doormat.  We’re not going to let that happen.  Mitt Romney and I are going to crack down on China cheating…and make sure that trade works for Americans…”  

Supporters of President Obama note that he successfully filed a trade complaint against China that has spurred construction of a $650 million steel tube mill in Youngstown.  And during his own campaign swing through northeast Ohio in July, President Obama announced he’s filed a similar complaint against China over import duties on U.S. made autos.