Veepstakes: Why rise of Paul Ryan, Chris Christie signals trouble for Romney

“Whatever doubts Americans may have about Mr. Romney's empathy or background, more of them will turn out for him if they see a leader with a vision and plan worthy of the current difficult moment,” the Journal editorial says.

The case for Christie may be a tougher sell for some conservatives. While Ryan has been in Congress since 1999, despite his tender age (early 40s), Christie has been governor for just 2-1/2 years and has no Washington experience to flesh out Romney’s own lack of Washington service. More potentially problematic is Christie’s penchant for dressing down voters in public. The clashes make for entertaining YouTube videos, and he is reasonably popular in his Democratic home state, but his Jersey style may not wear well day in and day out on the stump.  

Mr. Gerson says that Christie’s combativeness, in fact, is exactly what Romney needs, in a campaign that has become a “vicious, negative slugfest.”

“Romney needs more than an appealing spokesman,” Gerson writes. “He needs someone to engage aggressively on his behalf in the daily D-Day this campaign has become. All four leading vice presidential prospects might play this role. Christie would clearly play it best.”

Christie is also rumored to be the likely convention keynote speaker, which would take him out of the running for veep.

In any event, since Gerson’s blog post floating Christie for veep went up Thursday afternoon, there hasn’t exactly been a stampede to his point of view.

The Ryan idea seems to have more traction. In an interview with NBC on Thursday, Romney said he wants a running mate with “a vision for the country that adds something to the political discourse about the direction of the country.”

That, NBC’s Chuck Todd says, could point to Ryan.

Democrats, meanwhile, are salivating over Ryan as the veep choice. His plan to turn Medicare into a voucher-like system led to a memorable ad showing a Ryan look-alike pushing Grandma in her wheelchair off a cliff. That ad, and many more like it, would surely come back.

In addition, putting Ryan on the ticket would center the focus of the Romney campaign on the nation’s unsustainable fiscal path – to be sure, a concern of voters – and away from job creation and the economy, the No. 1 issue. Ryan’s youth could also give voters pause.

Portman and Pawlenty also contain risks. Portman was budget director in the George W. Bush White House, a negative for conservatives. Pawlenty was a two-term governor of a blue state, which also gives some conservatives pause. Both men have a nice-guy demeanor, which could make either of them less-than-convincing as an attack dog, a key role for the running mate.

In the end, only one thing is certain: We’ll get the answer soon. The Republican convention starts in 17 days.

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