Justin's Political Corner

Democrats were perhaps as excited by the selection of Rep. Paul Ryan as Republicans Saturday, boasting that Ryan will be a boon to their cause on every level.

TPM Slideshow: Paul Ryan: Mitt Romney’s Running Mate

Their reasoning: Mitt Romney is inextricably tied now to the architect of the GOP’s plan to privatize Medicare, and Ryan’s proposal to slash entitlements is guaranteed to receive more national attention than ever before.

“In naming Congressman Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney has chosen a leader of the House Republicans who shares his commitment to the flawed theory that new budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthy, while placing greater burdens on the middle class and seniors, will somehow deliver a stronger economy,” Obama campaign manager Jim Messina said in a statement Saturday morning.

The Obama campaign had already spent months trying to link Ryan and Romney together in voters’ minds, highlighting every statement from the Republican candidate in which he praised the House Republican budget Ryan created. Democratic officials routinely referred to the “Romney-Ryan” plan in interviews and campaign materials — now it’s the Romney-Ryan ticket.

Democrats suggested to TPM that Ryan’s pick represents a turning point they can exploit on two major fronts.

On the policy end, Ryan’s budget instantly adds meat to Romney’s skeleton of a tax and deficit plan, where the governor has been notoriously cautious about offering any specifics that might be politically damaging. While Romney has not indicated he will run on Ryan’s budget specifically, Democrats won’t care about the distinction in formulating their attacks.

Obama has made tax fairness central to his campaign, calling his opponent “Romney Hood” for proposing a plan that would, according to an independent analysis, shower $250,000 in tax cuts on the wealthiest Americans while raising taxes for 95 percent of Americans. Ryan’s plan, which calls for a new system with only two income tax rates, 10 percent and 25 percent, has been scored much the same way and costs an estimated $4.5 trillion.

h/t: Benjy Sarlin at TPM