Paul Ryan-A Man For The Times Or A Man Ahead Of The Times?

I have written before about my admiration for the work of Paul Ryan, Chairman of the House Budget Committee, in "The Punter And The Quarterback".

Ryan showed yesterday that he is a true leader with his 2012 budget proposal.  A proposal that would reduce projected spending by over $6 trillion over the next 10 years.    Are these spending cuts?  Not like you and I would consider spending cuts in our own budgets.  Government spending will continue to grow.  In fact, it provides for spending above the projected level of inflation.  This article and chart by Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute that I found on Powerline provides some context.

The breadth and depth of what Ryan has proposed will establish what I think is a national dialogue like nothing I have seen in my lifetime.  This is not your typical "get along to go along" proposal or one based on merely "kicking the can down the road".  This is a transformative moment in the debate about our nation's fiscal path and the choices before us.

Ryan has drawn a clear choice for the American people.  This should put to rest any argument that there is no difference in who we send to Washington.  This is one guy who says what he means and means what he says. He knows how big the stakes are.  He knows that he will be attacked unmercifully by the Left.  He also knows that if we don't act now that we will pay a much higher price later.  A price that will inflict even more pain and affect even more people every day we delay in confronting our unsustainable spending.

The big question is whether the American people are ready to face up to reality.  Polls consistently show that the majority of the public supports restraining government spending in a general sense.  However, polls also show that there is no majority support for cutting anything in specific terms.  See my post, "In Touch With Reality???"

Paul Ryan has put a proposal forward that will require the American people to decide what path they want to be on.  A path that can provide a way out of the fiscal mess we are in and the potential to put us on a "path to prosperity" as Ryan calls it.  Or the current road to ruin that we are currently on.  The American people have to decide the future they want.  The 2012 election just got much more interesting due to Paul Ryan. That is when we will also find out whether Ryan is the man for the times or simply is a man ahead of the times.  No matter which way it goes, I know one thing.  Paul Ryan is A MAN!  We have not seem many like him in Washington in a long time.