The Hill News

Republicans have been the political victors in President Obama's public fight against Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), a top Republican said Monday.

Rep. Peter Roskam (R-Ill.), the GOP's chief deputy whip, said that Obama's public attacks on the 2012 budget crafted by Ryan, the chairman of the House Budget Committee, only served to elevate the Wisconsin Republican and his fiscal plan.

"He's kind of entered into this cage match with Paul Ryan, which I think is a bit unusual," Roskam said on WIND radio in Chicago.

"It's great for the Republicans; it's great for Paul Ryan," Roskam added. "But doesn't it seem like he's talking about Paul Ryan a lot?"

The president has been talking a tough game against Ryan's budget, which passed the House last week with no Democratic support. The plan is unlikely to advance through the Senate, but Democrats, including Obama, have sensed political opportunity in some of the Ryan plan's proposals, particul! arly the measure to transform Medicare.

Obama's taking his case on the budget across the country this week in a series of town hall meetings and interviews with local media affiliates, during which he might well voice more criticism on the GOP proposal.

That criticism might not differ much from the criticism Obama voiced against Ryan's plan last week during a closed-door fundraiser, audio of which was captured by CBS News.

"This is the same guy that voted for two wars that were unpaid for, voted for the Bush tax cuts that were unpaid for, voted for the prescription drug bill that cost as much as my healthcare bill â€" but wasn't paid for," Obama said. "So it's not on the level."

Obama has at times sought to elevate opposition figures as a political punching bag, with mixed results. He and Democrats went after John Boehner (R-Ohio), then the minority leader in the House, in September before the 2010 elections, but the attacks ap! peared to make no difference. The president pivoted in October! of 2010 to attack the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other outside campaign groups spending on behalf of Republicans.

For his part, Ryan declined to engage with the president over the attack, but chided Obama for using "campaign" rhetoric in the budget fight.

"I don't see how productive it would be to get into a partisan bickering match with the president," Ryan said Sunday on "Face the Nation" on CBS. "I'm just not going to do that, because we have things to do."