Ryan Pick Sharpens Romney Duel With Obama Over Budget

Mitt Romney moved a partisan split over budget cuts and government’s size front and center in the presidential race by selecting Paul Ryan as his running mate, choosing a lawmaker seen by Republicans as a policy visionary and by Democrats as a fiscal extremist.

Along with energizing his base, Romney’s vice presidential decision shifts a campaign he has sought to frame as a referendum on President Barack Obama’s economic record into a contest between two radically different visions of government’s role. The former Massachusetts governor’s pairing with Ryan, the fresh-faced Wisconsin congressman who is the architect of Republican congressional budget plans, sharpens the ticket’s contrast with Obama and promises a lively debate on whether and how to curb spending and overhaul U.S. entitlements, particularly Medicare.