“I don’t believe he is sincere”: Paul Ryan’s challenger has a message to send

[unhappycamper]

http://www.salon.com/2014/08/23/i_don%E2%80%99t_believe_he_is_sincere_paul_ryans_challenger_has_a_message_to_send/



“I don’t believe he is sincere”: Paul Ryan’s challenger has a message to send
Elias Isquith
Saturday, Aug 23, 2014 08:15 AM EST

He’s been in D.C. for so long — and he’s so often spoken of as a potential future resident of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue — that it can be hard sometimes to remember that, just like a backbencher or faceless party hack, the mighty Paul Ryan must face voters in Wisconsin every two years and ask them for their vote. Most of the time, this is a mere formality; Ryan’s district, Wisconsin’s first, is rated by election guru Charlie Cook as R+3, meaning Republican voters make up the clear (if not overwhelming) majority.

But this year, Ryan may have a real race on his hands; or at least that’s what his opponent, businessman Rob Zerban, believes. This is actually Zerban’s second matchup against Ryan, having lost to the GOP’s vice presidential nominee in 2012. But while Zerban was defeated by Ryan during their previous contest, he gave the supposedly erstwhile Randian much more trouble than anyone else ever had — and all without much support from the national Democratic Party.

Salon recently spoke with Zerban, not long after he won the Democratic primary for the first district. Our conversation touched on Ryan’s record, his attempt to rebrand himself as an anti-poverty crusader , his likely 2016 aspirations, and whether the national-level Democratic Party will throw its weight behind Ryan’s challenger in a way they never did in 2012. The interview is below, and has been edited for clarity and length.

You didn’t get a ton of support from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) when you ran against Congressman Ryan in 2012. What’s your relationship with the DCCC been like this time?

[monmouth3]

1. Ryan (with the sad-sack eyes) loss would be as big a deal as loser Canter. Let'd do it...n/t