Paul Ryan wants to repeal and replace Obama Care with his own health plan that he thinks will serve the American people better, especially people in his district. Paul Ryan met with some of his constituents in his district to discuss repealing and replacing Obama Care, and his constituents agree with him that it is important to always put the patient first when it comes to creating a health plan. Paul Ryan has been quoted saying, “However long [the] transition’s going to take, we’re going to make sure that the rug doesn’t get pulled out from under people—and that’s something we want to make very clear.” Also Paul Ryan and his constituents agreed that people with pre-existing conditions can not be denied coverage because of their health status. Paul Ryan is taking a strong stance against Obama Care and has the taken up the position of a different health care plan that he thinks will be a much better plan. Paul Ryan taking a stance against Obama Care makes him more likeable and relatable to his constituents. Paul Ryan is aligning himself with the beliefs of his constituents and this continues to build up his strong tenure and reputation among his constituents (which will help him get reelected in the future).
Paul has taken the position to support Trump’s border wall between Mexico and the U.S. which has caused a lot of controversy. Paul Ryan was spotted recently touring the border along Mexico and Texas, and he did not let any media follow him there. After his tour, Paul Ryan was quoted saying, “When you see with your own eyes the many challenges facing our law enforcement professionals along the border, it gives you even greater respect for the work that they do day in and day out, But more tools and more support are needed for them to do their jobs effectively.” The position Paul Ryan has taken on immigration has made a lot of people criticize his stance on immigration, and people protested against him when he was in Texas touring the border. Some citizens are disappointed in him because they thought he was a moderate on immigrant not someone who supported Trump’s immigration policy. Paul Ryan’s stance on immigration aligns with some of his constituents beliefs, but his stance also does not align with other constituents beliefs.
Advertising
Paul Ryan met with people from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society in Wisconsin in order to be introduced to a six year old girl who had been diagnosed with Leukemia. Paul Ryan met this brave girl and presented her a certificate for the valery she has portrayed in her fight against cancer and the certificate read: “In recognition of not only being a survivor of Leukemia, but also of your hard work [which] . . . has been instrumental in [the] efforts [to find] cures, celebrating survivorship, and raising critical funds for research programs. . . . Your service is greatly appreciated by the residents of the Kenosha community, the State of Wisconsin, and the United States of America.” Paul Ryan is taking his own personal time to meet with the people of his district and try to connect with them to a build a positive brand name of himself by showing his constituents that he cares about their needs in life even if it doesn’t involve politics. By meeting with this young girl, Paul Ryan creates a more favorable image of himself as a congressman who truly cares about his constituents.
Credit Claiming
As Speaker of the House, Paul Ryan is taking part of the credit for the 200 day plan to push forward Donald Trump’s agenda which includes to repeal and replace Obama Care and come up with two budgets in this upcoming year, and one of those budgets will be a tax reform. Paul Ryan was quoted saying, “This will be the most productive presidency and Congress in our lifetimes.” Paul Ryan is letting the American people and his constituents know that he is doing everything in his power to push forward Trump’s agenda and mentions he has been successful so far, like repealing parts of Obama Care. Paul Ryan is also showing people that he actually wants to get “stuff” done, and that he is an instrumental part in accomplishing Trump's agenda and how his power as Speaker of the House is a major contributor in accomplishing Trump’s agenda.
Paul Ryan also sponsored the bill H.R.2668 which states: “This bill prohibits the Department of Health and Human Services from taking any action to finalize, implement, enforce, or otherwise give effect to the proposed rule entitled ‘"Flexibility, Efficiency, and Modernization in Child Support Enforcement Programs"’ or any proposal set forth in the proposed rule.” This bill is one of the many Paul Ryan has sponsored in political career. Paul Ryan has sponsored and cosponsored over 100 bills since he has been in Congress. He has taken on a very active role in Congress, and he shows his constituents that he takes his job very seriously by trying to pass bills he thinks would be beneficial to his constituents and the rest of the American people. Paul Ryan has the track record to credit claim for a vast amount of bills he has tried to make become law, and he seems to claim a lot of credit on legislation regarding health care and taxes. Paul Ryan has taken the credit for repealing Obama care and drafting a bill that will improve the American tax system and fix the national budget.
Paul Ryan can also “credit claim” he's probably the only person in Congress to get dabbed on.
Social Media
Paul Ryan uses twitter as a platform for himself which demonstrates the concepts of position taking, credit claiming, and advertising. Paul Ryan’s pinned tweet on his twitter (the first tweet everyone sees when they visit his twitter page) is a three minute video of himself saying how the U.S. and Israel need to restore their relation with one another. This video is a clear example of position taking by Paul Ryan stating his belief in how the U.S. and Israel should interact with one another, but it is also an example of advertising because the video is on display for the 1.64 million people who follow him on twitter, and they are exposed to the image building he creates of himself through twitter. Paul Ryan tweeted a link to the "Congressional Review Act" progress report (on Feb.22) to take credit for his efforts to get rid of Obama’s regulation, which would be an example of credit claiming. Paul Ryan has over 10 thousand tweets, so obviously social media has a large role in his career. His social media demonstrates advertising by showing press interviews and personal pictures of himself which greatly help build his brand name. Position taking is demonstrated by him tweeting by what his beliefs are on certain issues which allow his constituents to clearly know what he stands for, and this helps Paul Ryan show his constituents his beliefs align with there beliefs. Credit claiming is demonstrated by Paul Ryan tweeting about his accomplishments, like repealing Obama Care, and he shows his constituents how active he is, and how he is a vital factor in the successes of the government.
Franking and Traveling Expenses
Paul Ryan has spent a vast amount of money in franking in order to advertise for himself. During this past reelection year, Paul Ryan spent 5,363.97 dollars on franking to let his constituents know what he was doing in D.C.; he only spent 2,106.63 dollars on franking in 2015. Because he was up for reelection he took advantage of the free advertising of franking and let his constituents know what kind of beneficial work he was doing. Franking allows an easy way for Paul Ryan to credit claim and advertise for himself; the letters he mails can let his constituents know about his individual accomplishments or can promote him by saying how good of a person he is. He also spent a lot more money on traveling in 2016 than he did in 2015. He spent 37,027.56 dollars on traveling in 2016, and he only spent 10,868.94 dollars in 2015. Paul Ryan most likely spent a lot more money in 2016 so he could go home and spend more time in his district to interact with his constituents and help himself get reelected. By spending more time in his district he is able to campaign in his district and show his constituents that he cares about their needs and their time.
http://disbursements.house.gov/2016q3/2016q3_vol2.pdf
