Ahead of Biden Debate Romney Camp Freaks Out when Paul Ryan is Asked About Tax Cuts

The Romney campaign threw a fit tonight and cut off an interview when a local reporter asked Paul Ryan a tax cut question. If Ryan can’t handle the local media, how will he deal with Joe Biden?

When Paul Ryan was pressed by a local Michigan reporter about how his tax cut would reduce violent crime, his Romney campaign handlers immediately jumped in and ended the interview.

Here is the video:

Here is the exchange that got the interview cut off:

Ryan: The best thing to help prevent violent crime in the inner cities is to bring opportunity in the inner cities. Is to help teach people good discipline, good character. That is civil society. That is what charities and civic groups and churches do to help one another make sure that they can realize the value in one another.

ABC 12: And you can do all that by cutting taxes? With a big tax cut?

Ryan: Those are your words not mine.

Boom, just like that, Ryan’s Romney campaign handlers jumped in and put an end to the interview. As Ryan was taking his microphone off the Romney aide said, “That was kinda strange, you trying to stuff words in people’s mouths?”

The Romney campaign then put out a statement blaming the reporter for asking the question, “The reporter knew he was already well over the allotted time for the interview when he decided to ask a weird question relating gun violence to tax cuts. Ryan responded as anyone would in such a strange situation. When you do nearly 200 interviews in a couple months, eventually you’re going to see a local reporter embarrass himself.”

What was so embarrassing about the question? Ryan didn’t say how he and Mitt Romney could accomplish reducing violent crime. If the reporter was wrong, the campaign could have let Ryan clarify. By their thin skinned overreaction, the Romney campaign turned a minor moment into a big deal, and possibly showcased their pre-vp debate jitters.

Paul Ryan is supposed to be the genius boy wonder, “numbers guy,” but they won’t let him set the record straight with a local reporter?

The Romney campaign knows that they are lying about their $5 trillion tax cut, and now they are trying to silence anyone who asked for specifics. Make no mistake about it, the local reporter was digging for specifics. By asking the question the way he did, he was trying to get Ryan to give details, but the Romney campaign was not about to let that happen.

If the Romney campaign won’t let Paul Ryan handle a question from a local reporter in Michigan, how do they expect him to debate Vice President Biden on Thursday night?

Republicans want to think that Romney and Ryan are winning this election, but the behavior of this campaign reeks of a ticket that knows they are still losing.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association