Is there room in the Republican field for another candidate to jump into the race? Some political pundits and Republican lawmakers believe there is.
This week, there have been renewed calls for Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who is seen as a rising star in the Republican Party, to throw his hat into the ring. Ryan, who maintains a 100% pro-life rating from the National Right to Life Committee, is garnering the attention of several Republican heavyweights.
Pro-life Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, who also once considered entering the 2012 race, has made very public his admiration for Ryan. In a phone interview Wednesday, Daniels said, “I don’t think it’s a secret that he was strongly encouraging me to try. I’ve been strongly encouraging him to run as well. He has all the qualities our party needs to be emphasizing in these elections. He can explain—and is willing to explain—in plain English why today’s policies are a disaster for the middle class, and he has the smarts to go toe-to-toe with the people who are saying misleading things about the proposals that he’s put out there.”
Pro-life former Florida Governor Jeb Bush is also supportive of a Ryan bid saying, “Paul Ryan would be a formidable candidate. I admire his substance and energy.” Pro-life Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, a leading conservative in the House, remarked that Ryan would “an asset” to the race.
The Weekly Standard reported California Congressman Devin Nunes has been pushing Ryan for months toward a presidential bid. According to two sources of The Weekly Standard, Speaker of the House John Boehner has also encouraged Ryan to run. Boehner has called Ryan “a natural candidate.”
Pro-life Senator John Cornyn of Texas told Laura Ingraham on Thursday regarding openings in the presidential field, “I like a lot of the names that have been mentioned — Chris Christie, Paul Ryan. I tried to get [Ryan] to run for the Senate, actually, not president, but he’s one of our stars. He’d be great.”
Wednesday night, pro-life Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren, “I would love to see him run. I hope he’s at least serious about reconsidering it, because I think there’s a lot of people across America who would love to see him on the ticket.”
However, in the same interview, Walker praised all three of the top tier Republican candidates; Gov. Rick Perry, Former Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep. Michele Bachmann. “In the end” he said he has a “bias” toward supporting a governor for president. He also remarked, “I’ve worked most closely with Rick Perry, and seen the success he’s had in Texas.”
Republican strategist and chief Bush advisor Karl Rove also noted there was still room in the presidential field and that he could see either Ryan or Christie entering the race.
Congressman Ryan, a key Republican voice on fiscal matters, is also a strong voice for the unborn. In his seven terms in Congress, Ryan has voted to ban taxpayer funding of abortion, to deny funding to Planned Parenthood, to repeal the pro-abortion Obama healthcare law, to prevent taxpayer funding of embryonic stem cell research and to ban the horrific practice of partial-birth abortion. His stellar pro-life voting record would be a welcome addition to a field that boasts some of the most pro-life records ever in a Republican presidential primary.
