There are 89 days before Election Day. Can the nation stand nearly three more months of each presidential candidate accusing the other of either outright lies or running ads that distort his record?

It’s enough to turn off even the most fervent political junkie. But it doesn’t have to be this way.

My dear friends at the Wall Street Journal editorial board today came up with a solution. They want Mitt Romney to pick Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate.

They believe Mitt is toast, if he goes the safe route and chooses either Ohio’s Bob Portman or Minnesota’s Tim Pawlenty for the VP slot. They are smart guys, but do little to fire up voters. The media would depict either Bob and T-Paw as "another middle-aged white male, just like Mitt," according to the WSJ.

Fire-eater Ryan, an advocate of massive reductions in federal social programs (e.g., meals on wheels), would be a radical move. As the WSJ editorial wrote of Ryan: “Against the advice of every Beltway bed wetter, he has put entitlement reform at the center of the public agenda—before it becomes a crisis that requires savage cuts.” The choice of Ryan would be a downright un-Mitt-like decision.

The WSJ opined that Romney is losing the election because he is suffering a series of political flesh wounds from issues like his failure to release taxes, massive wealth and Bain Capital. “Romney’s best chance for victory is to make this a big election over big issues,” according to the WSJ. The Journal is right on target.

Romney/Ryan offers a sharp contrast to Obama/Biden. By giving America two competing visions of the future, a Romney/Ryan ticket would fire up voters of all political stripes. Also, the media would have some meaty issues to report, other than misleading advertising.

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