Some Conservatives in Redlands-Loma Linda Will Like Romney's VP Pick Ryan

In Redlands and Loma Linda, where tight city budgets have been a fact of life for years, presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's pick of Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, will resonate with some conservatives, and may help frame debates in local elections come November.

Romney announced Ryan as his running mate early Saturday Aug. 11 via a smartphone app. News networks and pundits on Twitter reported the decision Friday evening.

Ryan, 42, was elected to Congress in 1998 at age 28. His embrace of budget analysis and alternative plans to balance federal spending have catapulted him to the forefront of the Republican Party.

His plans and ideas, which he has packaged as a "Roadmap for America's Future" and a "Path to Prosperity," include proposals to restructure Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid in efforts to rein in federal spending.

So staunch in his fiscal conservative beliefs that he has voted in the past against accepting earmarks for his home district, Ryan's take-no-prisoners approach to bottom line deficit reduction is appealing to many Tea Party activists.

In Redlands and Loma Linda, with the neighboring city of San Bernardino in the throes of bankruptcy, have taken care to point out their cities are on more solid financial footing.

But Romney's selection of a budget committee leader, with detailed alternatives to the incumbent Obama administration's struggles with deficits and the economy, is sure to bring a sharper edge to the November elections, from the race for the White House to local races at the city level.

Whether Ryan's approach to numbers will play well with voters remains to be seen.

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