A new political chapter began last week as Paul Ryan, the congressman from Wisconsin, was elected to replace John Boehner as speaker of the House of Representatives.

A young new face with creative ideas, Paul Ryan is the youngest speaker of the House in more than a century. The 45-year-old obtained 236 of 435 votes — and is viewed as one of the few people that could unite a struggling Republican party.  

Long before he got into national politics, responsibility was thrust upon Ryan at age 16 when his father passed away. Ryan was the one that discovered his father’s body in his parent’s bedroom. Rather than succumb to depression, he went out and got his first job, ran for his high school’s class president and won.

This sense of responsibility and leadership is something the congressman has carried with him throughout his six terms in the House of Representatives. Ryan has been the lead author on a wide range of bills, from fixing the country’s tax code to reforming the entitlement system.[mks_pullquote align=”left” width=”300″ size=”24″ bg_color=”#ddd090″ txt_color=”#ffffff”]”I would love to see tax reform accomplished, and I think it can best be accomplished if Paul is the chair”[/mks_pullquote]

His efforts to tackle the nation’s fiscal problems while in Congress have inspired many Republicans to view him as an ideological leader. Rep. Dave Reichert from Washington told The Huffington Post, “I would love to see tax reform accomplished, and I think it can best be accomplished if Paul is the chair.”

No major legislation has made it through Congress in years, so the fact that Ryan has authored two huge potential bills gives him far more credibility and insight into getting laws passed. The new speaker has an admirable reputation as someone that will not only take on tough issues but will lead us through them.

Ryan knows what parts of his bills are necessary, and what parts can be compromised on, so he should have the best chance of getting both Democrats and Republicans to take action.

The simple act of bringing bills up for votes has been a problem in recent years because Boehner has always blocked them. Boehner is known for blocking votes on popular bills in matters of infrastructure, employment and immigration, according to Politica USA. Ryan is different: he’s already shown a track record for getting things done — by sponsoring bills and working with the Democratic party. He will be far more likely to make other representatives cast votes to show the electorate that they can agree and work together.

Boehner lost the support of his fellow Republicans precisely because he wouldn’t fight for their ideas by bringing any bills to the floor that the President opposed. Boehner also punished those on his side by taking away their spots on different committees if they didn’t go along with what he wanted.[mks_pullquote align=”right” width=”300″ size=”24″ bg_color=”#ddd090″ txt_color=”#ffffff”]Ryan is different: he’s already shown a track record for getting things done[/mks_pullquote]

On both of these fronts, Ryan promised to act different because he wants differing opinions to be expressed without fear of reprisals.

It is for all of these reasons that Ryan is the perfect fit to deal with the problems that are currently affecting the nation. In the current dysfunctional political environment, where collaboration across party lines rarely happens, it is impossible to see a Republican or Democrat that could convince all members of the opposing party to pass bipartisan legislation as much as Ryan will.

Ryan is the only one that can unify his party while crafting solutions that some Democrats should be willing to support.