No Horatio Alger story here

Paul Ryan's "just a working class stiff who found the American Dream" schtick reminds me a lot of when Scott Brown ran for the Senate. Brown successfully pulled off a "good old boy" scam by driving into rallies in a pick up truck, just like the all the old cranky Yankees that vote GOP because they hate hippies, gays and lazy colored people. He didn't even drive it around himself. Somebody would deliver it close to the venue and he would take the wheel from there.

In any event, Ryan's "humble roots" are just as big a crock:

And yet Ryan, 42, was born into one of the most prominent families in Janesville, Wis., the son of a successful attorney and the grandson of the top federal prosecutor for the western region of the state. Ryan grew up in a big Colonial house on a wooded lot, and his extended clan includes investment managers, corporate executives and owners of major construction companies. [...]

But there was also more to it than work. Ryan's rise to political power and financial stability was boosted by family connections and wealth. The larger Ryan family has repeatedly helped the candidate along in his career, giving him a job when he needed one and piling up tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions.

Not to mention marrying a high priced corporate lawyer from a very wealth family. And the hundreds of thousands in trust funds from his own family.

I have more at the Detroit News so won't bother to repeat it here. All I'll add is, the GOP base is so easily swayed by fakery, it's pathetic.

[More posts daily at the Detroit News.]