Paul Ryan: I Requested Obama Stimulus Funds By Accident

Paul Ryan admitted on Friday that he did in fact request Obama stimulus money for businesses in Wisconsin. Then the GOP vice presidential nominee claimed the letters he sent for stimulus requests were delivered by accident.

This is not the first time Paul Ryan has had to answer questions regarding his stimulus fund requests. In a 2010 interview, Ryan said he would not vote against a bill and “then write to the government to ask them to send us money.”

According to the Boston Globe, that, however, is exactly what Paul Ryan did. The Wisconsin lawmaker sent not one but four letters to the Department of Energy on behalf of two Wisconsin companies that were attempt to create new “green jobs” in the state with the help of federal stimulus dollars.

On Thursday, Ryan continued to deny the allegations of his stimulus money requests. Then, on Friday, he turned the argument around, blaming the very people he was working for. In his statement, Ryan noted that the four requests were “treated as constituent service requests.” Ryan than tells the New York Times:

“This is why I didn’t recall the letters earlier. But they should have been handled differently.”

Despite his requests for the money, Paul Ryan says the stimulus package did little if nothing at all to boost the US economy.

In the meantime, the Congressional Budget Office claims that the stimulus package offered by President Obama increased employment by 1.3 million to 3.3 million people.

Do you think it was wrong for Paul Ryan to accept funds from a program he adamantly spoke out against and voted against?