he's demanding to be called MISTER Ryan, not by his official title,, congressman Ryan. He's in congress, running on his record and running for re-election too. yet he doesn't want that stink on him for titles.
When Paul Ryan and Joe Biden take the debate stage tonight in Danville, Ky., the form of address the debate moderator is supposed to use with the VP's opponent is "mister" instead of "congressman," two sources confirmed to POLITICO.
The form of address is part of the detailed memorandum of understanding between the two camps, according to the sources familiar with the document. Such MOUs detail specifics ranging from how footage of the debates can be used to podium placement, and so forth.
(Also on POLITICO: Ex-debate foes: Ryan a tough debater)
A Biden spokeswoman didn't imediately respond to a question about the MOU. A Ryan aide indicated it had been discussed but that it didn't appear to have made it into the MOU.
The sources did not spell out with precision why "mister" was preferable to "congressman," but it is almost certainly because of the low approval ratings overall of Congress. And under the terms of the agreement, each candidate gets to tell the moderator, Martha Raddatz, what they want to be called by way of an introduction.
