Ryan, like Akin, thinks 'gentle' or 'friendly' rape is OK???

Johnson, Ryan and Romney yukking it up

U.S Sen. Ron Johnson, R-WI,  Monday called on GOP Senate candidate Todd Akin of Missouri to "step aside" after the congressman said victims of “legitimate rape” rarely get pregnant, WisPolitics reports.

"Todd Akin’s statements are reprehensible and inexcusable," Johnson tweeted today. "He should step aside today for the good of the nation."

It's remarkable that Johnson didn't applaud Akin.  Someone must have clued him in.

But does Ron Johnson -- known as RoJo the Clown to Wisconsinites for his inability to understand or articulate even the most simple issues -- think Paul Ryan should "step aside" from the national ticket?

Ryan, you see, shares Akin's view that there are different kinds of rape.  There's "forcible" rape, and then there's whatever other kind he imagines.          

Kaili Joy Gray explains on Daily Kos:

Ryan  co-sponsored HR 3, the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion" bill in which Republicans tried to redefine rape so that it only applied to "forcible" rape so those fake rape victims would stop exploiting loopholes to cash in on fabulous gifts and prizes. Republicans pulled that part out of the bill so everyone would stop criticizing them, and then they tried to sneak it back in anyway.

So Akin is really aligned with Ryan, who's been a hard liner on  banning abortion for rape victims -- even "forcible" rape victims as opposed to those subjected to "gentle" rape or "friendly" rape or whatever those guys think the alternative is.

Johnson joins Ryan for President fan club; Does Tea Party know that?

Jennifer Rubin on Washington Post's Right Turn blog"

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), a freshman and Tea Party favorite, on the Charlie Sykes radio show in Wisconsin today gave thumbs up to a presidential run for Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) Johnson said, “He is one of the few individuals on the national scene who is actually putting forward real proposals...I’d love to see Paul run.” Johnson made the point that his race was also improbable. Johnson had never run for office, let alone at the national level. But as Johnson put it, “We are in a whole new age in terms of communications.” He acknowledged that “politics is awash in money,” but he questioned the “how effective money is” as compared to other factors. In short, he posited that “a late entrance has a great chance of success.”

Earlier this week, Johnson was preaching gloom and doom to the Oshkosh Rotary Club, warning that the US is at a tipping point financially.

It makes you wonder if he's aware of some of the Paul Ryan votes that seem to be anathema to Johnson's fellow Tea Partiers. The Republican Liberty caucus of Wisconsin is among those sharply criticizing his record.

Ryan voted for the $700-billion TARP bailout bill, No Child Left Behind, extended unemployment benefits, the auto industry bailout, the tax on CEO bonuses, the trillion dollar wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and more. Some of those votes might make him more attractive to moderates, but that's not who's driving this GOP nomination train wreck.

Johnson's likely to get himself kicked out of the Tea Party caucus if he keeps talking up his home state guy.

Gov. Scott Walker chimed in, too.  Walker told Fox News:

"[Ryan's] one of the most courageous people I know. We need leaders of courage. People who worry more about the next generation than the next election. That's what you would get out of Paul Ryan. I hope he's serious about reconsidering it. There's a lot of people across America who would love to see him on the ticket."

And he probably wouldn't mind seeing him out of office if he loses. Wisconsin may not be big enough for two ambitious, 40-something conservatives.

Don't Let Them Run From Their Words

Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), May 17, 2011: "You want to make sure that the bondholder has confidence that the government's going to be able to pay them.... That's what I'm hearing from most people, which is if a bondholder misses a payment for a day or two or three or four what is more important that you're putting the government in a materially better position to be able to pay their bonds later on."

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), June 24, 2011 on administration warnings of "catastrophic consequences" of not raising debt limit: "I don't believe them, it's not true."

Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), July 18, 2011: "I am a little bit cynical about the scare mongering and putting America's back up against this Aug. 2 deadline just to get an increase in the American credit card."

TPM is keeping the list current

RoJo, totally off message, says Ryancare is a voucher

While Paul Ryan was at the White House whining that Democrats are calling his Medicare plan a voucher program, Sen. Ron Johnson, soon to be Wisconsin's senior Senator, was at the Appleton Post Crescent.

Johnson, asked what he liked about Ryan's plan, said:

What I like about the Paul Ryan plan is it's trying bring a little bit of free- market principles back into Medicare.

If you need subsidized care, we'll give you vouchers. You figure out how you want to spend. You select what insurance carrier you want to use. It's a start.

Greg Sargent at the Washington Post has a little fun with it.

Paul Ryan's not running for US Senate

Hate to spoil the fun, but Rep. Paul Ryan is not running for Sen. Herb Kohl's seat in 2012.

When I was a kid, my dad used to say he'd bet "a dollar to a doughnut" on something he considered a sure thing. In those days doughnuts cost a nickel; now some of them cost close to a dollar, or more, so that's not such a good offer.

So let's make is 20 dollars to a doughnut that says Ryan's not running.

Every politician loves being touted for higher office, and they usually prolong the tease by saying they haven't even thought about it -- or, in the case of Tommy Thompson, saying endlessly that he is thinking about it.

The latest word is that Ryan will decide this week. But he's already decided.

He's in the catbird seat now, as chair of the House Budget Committee with a new Republican majority and a good share of the national spotlight. He's being mentioned as a possible veep candidate, which is speculation that can stay alive for more than a year, until the 2012 convention.

To run for the Senate he'd have to give up his House seat. And if he won, he'd most likely be in the minority in the Senate, and at the bottom in seniority -- even behind a doofus like Ron Johnson, Wisconsin's new, forgotten Senator.

It's a lose-lose situation for Ryan. Count him out.