The fact that Mitt Romney’s running mate, Paul Ryan, told a radio interviewer that he had run a “two hour and fifty-something” marathon when records show his actual time was just over four hours suggests that he would violate the most fundamental ethic of sportsmanship in order to present himself as more accomplished and talented than he actually is.
But let’s assume, as Ryan suggests, that it was an honest mistake, and that he “should have rounded his marathon time to four hours rather than three.” So, it was just a simple error of calculation on his part. In that case, we should wonder whether he applied the same level of analytical rigor to his famous budget plan.