Each day the briefing books have grown fatter. At home in Wisconsin last Sunday, he watched a tape of Sarah Palin's 2008 debate. And this Sunday, Representative Paul D. Ryan will hunker down for his first full day of debate prep before he faces off against Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. next month.
Preparing to debate Mr. Biden has been on Mr. Ryan's to-do list ever since his selection as the Republican running mate, but the process accelerated after the Republican National Convention.
The campaign has selected a Biden stand-in - though it has so far declined to name him. The stand-in will not be present on Sunday during Mr. Ryan's prep, which will take place in Oregon during a break from fund-ra ising on the West Coast, according to a senior aide. The format will be less than the full-scale rehearsals Mitt Romney held over several days in Vermont this week while the Democratic National Convention monopolized the spotlight.
“At some point we'll do a full-scale debate camp as the governor did,'' the aide said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss behind-the-scenes preparations. “Thus far most of the prep has consisted of Paul reading and editing briefing books.''
A challenge for Mr. Ryan is to translate his sometimes wonky policy explanations into ordinary language. He has struggled to explain, for example, why it is not hypocritical to accuse President Obama of “raiding†Medicare when his own House budget includes the same $716 billion in savings â€" losing himself in the weeds of “the current C.B.O. law baseline.''
“I think it would be fair to say that after a number of years in Congress and p utting together the budget, Chairman Ryan has an exceptional grasp of policy,'' his aide said. “A lot of what we're working on is the best way to debate, particularly given the vast experience the Vice President brings to this process.''
The most raucous applause for Mr. Ryan at rallies is often when a local official introducing him refers to the debate on Oct. 11. But the Romney-Ryan campaign is seeking to downplay expectations.
“Remember, the Vice President has run for president twice, he's probably one of the most experienced debaters in American politics right now,'' the aide said.
Mr. Ryan's preparations will not be all sweat and toil. He plans to break to watch his Green Bay Packers play their season opener against the San Francisco 49ers.
