Sikh memorial led to delay in Ryan announcement

The Friday memorial service for Sikh worshippers forced Mitt Romney to delay announcement on his vice presidential pick Paul Ryan by a day.

Washington: The Friday memorial service for Sikh worshippers, who were killed in a shooting incident inside a Gurdwara in the US, forced Mitt Romney to delay announcement on his vice presidential pick Paul Ryan by a day.

In fact it was on August 05 - the day of the tragic shooting incident - that Romney had a top secret meeting with Ryan. The meeting was held at the Brookline, Massachusetts house of Beth Meyers, Romney`s top confidant and advisor.

"The two held a private meeting in her living room, during which Romney offered him the VP slot, and Ryan accepted," the Fox news reported.

It was here that Ryan and Romney first received the news of the Gurdwara shooting.

Six worshippers were killed in the shootout inside the Gurdwara last Sunday in Oak Creek in Wisconsin.

Ryan, who represents a Congressional district from Wisconsin, kept a close watch on the developments in Oak Creek through his aides. Immediately after the meeting he left for his State.

According to Myers, who held a rare interaction with the media on Saturday, Romney initially wanted to make the announcement for his vice-presidential pick in New Hampshire on Friday.

However, the memorial service for the Sikh worshippers made Romney change in his plan and the venue for his announcement was changed from New Hampshire to Norfolk Virginia against the backdrop of USS Wisconsin.

With a battery of media always following Ryan because of the speculation on vice president, Myers said Ryan developed a secret plan to reach Norfolk.

On Friday morning, Ryan and his family members left their home together for the memorial service.

After attending the memorial service, Ryan`s wife and kids were driven to the airport, while Ryan went to his home.

"Ryan was driven home by his aide, where his sister-in-law was waiting for him. In order to throw off members of the press who had been trailing his every move for weeks, Ryan walked out the backdoor and through woods behind his house, where he met back up with Speth. The two then sped off to the airport to meet his family, leaving everyone thinking he was still in the house," Fox News said.

"The plane landed in Elizabeth City completely undetected, where Ryan met up with Myers and other senior Romney staffers at a Fairfield Inn. He made the hour-long drive from North Carolina to Virginia the next morning where he was introduced to America as Romney`s running mate," the news channel said.

PTI

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