Paul Ryan admits missteps in Romney campaign - India News and Travel Times Provides India-centric and other News and Features

Republican vice-presidential pick Paul Ryan has admitted to there being ‘missteps’ in the Republican presidential campaign, ahead of the first presidential debate in Denver. Ryan downplayed expectations of Romney’s debate performance, though fellow conservatives insisted that the White House challenger would deliver a stellar presentation.

A key Romney ‘misstep’ was dismissing 47 percent of Americans as government-dependent ‘victims’ in a closed-door fund-raiser he held for wealthy donors that was caught on tape. Ryan said the comment was ‘an inarticulate way of describing’ how Republicans are trying ‘to create prosperity and upward mobility, and reduce dependency by getting people off welfare back to work’. “We've had some missteps, but at the end of the day, the choice is really clear and we're giving people a very clear choice,” The Telegraph quoted Ryan, as saying.

According to the report, Ryan insisted that no single debate would ‘make or break’ the Republican campaign. Obama is "a very gifted speaker," Ryan added. "The man's been on the national stage for many years. He's an experienced debater. He's done these kinds of debates before. This is Mitt's first time on this kind of a stage," Ryan added. With Romney slipping in the polls ahead of the November 6 election, the debates with President Barack Obama, scheduled for October 3, 16 and 22, are seen as the last chance to swing the electorate in his favour, the report added.