Is Paul Ryan a 'marvelous' VP pick for Mitt Romney?

Powerline's John Hinderaker suggests that Obama may be feeling a bit peevish, since his own budget proposals garner no effusive praise. "You certainly don’t hear it ("marvelous") said about Obama’s budget. His FY 2012 budget was voted down 97-0 in the Senate, and his FY 2013 budget was voted down 414-0 in the House. The Senate’s Democratic leadership is trying to prevent it from coming up for a vote in that body, lest it be skunked again," Hinderaker wrote.

Ryan did not take the attacks lying down, firing back in a detailed rebuttal on Facebook, and in a press release arguing that “History will not be kind to a president who, when it came time to confront our generation’s defining challenge, chose to duck and run. The president refuses to take responsibility for the economy and refuses to offer a credible plan to address the most predictable economic crisis in our history. Instead, he has chosen tired and cynical political attacks as he focuses on his own re-election."

For better or worse, it seems clear that a Romney/Ryan ticket would focus national attention where it ought to be, usefully deflecting attention from such riveting matters as Rick Santorum's views on contraception and the obligation of taxpayers to subsidize the same for 30-year-old graduate students.

From opposite ends of the spectrum, Dionne and Will seem to agree: Take the red pill, Mitt.

Eric Schulzke writes on national politics for the Deseret News. He can be contacted at eschulzke@desnews.com.