http://www.politico.com/story/2016/06/paul-ryan-trump-vice-president-224169Ryan explains what he wants to see in Trump's VP pick
By Nick Gass
06/10/16 06:46 AM EDT
Anyone who wants to be Donald Trump's running mate needs to make a strong case against Hillary Clinton's email habits, House Speaker Paul Ryan said in an interview aired Friday.
"I think you just have to spell it out so that people understand the kind of thinking that goes behind this 'I can live above the law, live above everybody else,'" the Wisconsin Republican told Hugh Hewitt, when asked what kind of skillsets the Republican vice presidential nominee would need to have.
Ryan, who in addition to being second in line to succeed the president, knows something about the task at hand, having served as Mitt Romney's running mate in 2012. And he outlined a potential line of attack against Clinton.
"Certain standards" are expected of elected officials, he began, "not least of which is the president of the United States."
"And those standards are that we believe in the rule of law, and we believe in holding ourselves accountable to the rule of law, and that we should not live above the law. That, to me, is one of the cardinal sins that Secretary Clinton violated," Ryan said. "And that is one of those things that the VP not only needs to point out. You have to have a VP who's ready to step up and be president at any moment, but also a vice president candidate who can articulate the policy of the forthcoming administration, and can delineate the differences. And that's something, there are a lot of capable people. I'm sure there's a good list that's being developed. That's something that the VP is going to have to do."
Earlier in the same interview, Ryan called Clinton's cybersecurity plan "the height of irony."
"Now, you’re a constitutional officer in addition to being the leader of the party. And so I assume you take all the precautions one needs to take to protect your data. What’s that involve, Speaker Ryan?" Hewitt asked, according to a transcript. "Well, I’m not going to give … No. 1 is don’t answer that question," Ryan said, laughing.
Ryan remarked that he uses secure communications, receives briefings in secure facilities, and added, "There are certain things that I have to do to secure not only my own data, but whenever I engage in foreign policy or get briefings on intelligence matters, I have to use secure communications."
"Now in terms of that, did your life change dramatically from going from chairman of the Budget Committee to speaker with regards to the level of steps you have to take to maintain your communications being secure?" Hewitt inquired.
"Yeah, it does change. It does change. I won’t go into the details and specifics, but it does change," Ryan said.
