Rob Zerban vs... Ayn Rand

O'Reilly and Hannity and Beck and those clowns always bring up a ridiculous and totally imaginary so-called "war against Christmas." In the video above you can see with your own eyes the right-wing Republican war against Christ. And that one is real-- and there's no foot soldier for Ayn Rand more devoted to her anti-Jesus philosophy of greed and selfishness than Raul Ryan.

In case you missed it Tuesday, Blue America formally endorsed Rob Zerban, the progressive Wisconsin Democrat who's running for the southeast Wisconsin congressional seat Ryan is holding, and hosted a live chat with him at C&L. It was a great chat and Rob painted a very different vision of a resurgent America that isn't anything like the dark, crabbed, dystopian picture Ryan has been painting.

It was almost beside the point but I asked him the Ayn Rand question, since Ryan has admitted that he has used her adolescent novels as inspiration for his entire political thinking. I wondered if the folks in the district even know Ryan is a disciple of hers, and proudly claimed that "the reason I got involved in public service, by and large, if I had to credit one thinker, one person, it would be Ayn Rand." During the chat, I asked Rob this: "Do people in Janesville and Kenosha and Racine even know who Ayn Rand is and that Ryan is trying to put her dystopian vision into a Republican Party agenda?" He shot right back with this:

I have talked to [state Senator] Chris Larson about this issue as well and it is clear that Ryan's allegiance to this philosopher is very strange and unique. The more people learn about him, his ideas, and their source, (Ayn Rand), the less they like him.

I think the days of Ryan being a sincere boyish-faced young man are over. When you go out on a limb and propose some of the most radical ideas to ever be thrown around in Congress, you lose a lot of your credibility.

There are more and more people in Wisconsin and across the country who are seeing past Ryan’s slick campaign. Ryan is constantly parading in front of FOX NEWS and right-wing think tanks but when he visited the district, he got booed in the Labor Day parade in his home town. The messaging is bouncing off a lot of people.

There are still many Ryan supporters. I think they are a minority but the tea party and Republicans who vote against their own interests are a serious problem myself and my campaign will address. One of the major things we have found is that many of Ryan’s supporters don’t realize what he has supported or what is in his budget. No one has told them before. Many change their minds very quickly when they learn and part of what I need to do is get the resources to put that information in front of them.

I have also gotten many questions about the influence Ayn Rand has had on Paul Ryan. I believe this selfish atheistic philosophy has played a formative role in Paul Ryan’s career. Ayn Rand’s icy cold social Darwinism is popular among boys in High School because it is a philosophy without responsibility. It says that whatever benefits you is what is right and good. He is a huge fan of Ayn Rand and his budget may well me the best example of selfishness yet in government.

Selfishness, including the kind Ayn Rand is so fond of, is exactly what is wrong with this country. We have companies that spill oil and crash the economy without a care in the world. We have politicians that sell out students, seniors, and middle class families for campaign contributions. All of this selfish behavior has hurt our country and it is clear that Paul Ryan’s philosophy is a root cause of this behavior.

I think when voters go to the polls they will be voting based on who will help the economy and who is on their side. I think Ayn Rand is not an issue that by itself will win, but I think understanding the deep commitment Paul Ryan has to Ayn Rand gives great insight into how someone can become deluded enough to advocate for such destructive ideas.

We know there are a lot of Members of Congress, all far right extremists, who know who Ayn Rand is. It's important that we have some Democrats who understand who she is as well, and what she stands for. If you can, please join Blue America in helping Rob Zerban's grassroots campaign to replace Paul Ryan.