CINCINNATI — Representative Paul D. Ryan may have largely disappeared from the national spotlight down the campaign homestretch, ceding attention to Mitt Romney. But if the Republican ticket prevails, Mr. Ryan plans to come back roaring, establishing an activist vice presidency that he said would look like Dick Cheney’s under President George W. Bush.

Mr. Ryan would dedicate most evenings to dinners with senators and House members of both parties, aides said, as he steps into the role Mr. Romney promised: architect of a Romney administration’s drive to enact a budget that shrinks the government and overhauls programs likeMedicare.

On a grinding schedule in the election’s final hours, rushing to as many as five states in a day, Mr. Ryan avoids specifics in his speeches about his duties if elected. Behind the scenes, he speaks at least weekly to the office of Mike Leavitt, the former Utah governor who leads the Romney campaign’s transition team.

The prospect of a deeply engaged vice president was described in interviews with campaign aides, close House colleagues and the few times Mr. Ryan has discussed his potential future job. Asked by a reporter last month if he expected the kind of broad responsibility for the economy that Mr. Cheney held for national security — as an aide suggested — Mr. Ryan said, “I do.”

“A large reason he was chosen was to help Romney govern,” an adviser to the campaign said. “Paul’s going to focus on being a partner.”

Before Mr. Ryan accepted the nomination, aides said, he had extensive conversations about his position with Mr. Romney, who assured him he would play a guiding role on fiscal and economic matters. Already seen as an intellectual leader of the Republican Party because of his sweeping House budget proposals, Mr. Ryan would wield the clout that comes from being recognized as the party’s most likely next in line for the presidency, prominent Republicans said.

“My guess is Paul will be an extraordinarily consequential vice president,” said Representative Tom Cole of Oklahoma, a member of the Republican House leadership, who was a visitor to the Ryan family box during the Republican convention in August. “He’s going to play an important role in outlining, shaping and passing the Romney agenda from the day he walks in the door.”

The rest at: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/04/us/politics/paul-ryan-is-said-to-be-planning-an-active-role.html?hp