The Ryans arrive in Tampa for the GOP convention
TAMPA, Fla. -- Paul Ryan traveled from his Janesville, Wis., hometown for the start of the GOP convention, completing the arrival Tuesday of the presumed presidential ticket as official activities get underway.
The vice presidential pick has breathed new vigor into the campaign, as conservatives who had expressed lackluster support for Mitt Romney embraced the budget wonk for the No. 2 spot.
“It’s brought energy to the campaign,” said House Speaker John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said earlier in Tampa. “It’s brought energy to the candidate.”
Ryan is not expected to have a public presence until Wednesday, when he delivers a prime-time address in the convention hall at the Tampa Bay Times Forum. But his arrival will be noted.
Delegates and lawmakers here, particularly the GOP House members who have voted -- twice -- for Ryan’s budget blueprint have praised Romney’s choice for a running mate.
Ryan is among the party’s sharpest fiscal thinkers and the architect of the GOP’s approach to steep budget cuts and the Medicare overhaul that has been attacked by Democrats as ending the social safety net.
He arrived from Wisconsin with his wife, Janna, and their three small children. She is no stranger to politics as a popular former Capitol Hill aide-turned tax lobbyist and the daughter of a prominent Oklahoma political family.
At 42, Ryan is among the nation’s youngest vice presidential picks and the first member of Generation X to top a national party ticket.
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