Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin speaks during a campagin stop at the Iowa State Fair on Monday, August 13, in Des Moines. It was the newly minted GOP vice presidential candidate's first solo stop since becoming Mitt Romney's running mate.
(CNN) -- U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin is considered a rising GOP star and the Republican Party's leader on fiscal and budgetary issues.
The chairman of the House Budget Committee was first elected to Congress at age 28, and later helped launch the party's "Young Guns" program to recruit candidates in districts where Republicans lost.
Now 42, Ryan is the architect of the House GOP's budget proposal, which Democrats compared to an attack on the poor, but Republicans say is intended to save Medicare and rein in spending.
The chairman of the House Budget Committee was announced as the running mate for presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, left, jokes with Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan Saturday, August 11, after announcing him as his running mate at a campaign event on the USS Wisconsin in Norfolk, Virginia.
Romney and Ryan set as Republican ticket
Paul Ryan: I'm a policy person
Ryan: Obama has a record of failure
How Romney chose his running mate
Who is Paul Ryan?
"It's [Romney's] decision months from now, not mine. So why spend my time thinking about it? If this bridge ever comes that I should cross it, then I'll think about it then. It's not the time to think about it," he told The Wall Street Journal in April.
Romney announces Ryan as running mate
A native of Janesville, Wisconsin, Ryan earned a degree in political science and economics from Miami University in Ohio in 1992. He was raised as a Catholic, and worked at a family construction company before getting into politics. He's known to be an avid hunter and a fitness fanatic.
In the House, Ryan is also a senior member of the Ways and Means Committee.
He has frequently pushed the Republicans' "class warfare" line against President Barack Obama and is a major critic of his signature health reform law.
"If you give us more elected representatives to fix this problem, we will fix this problem in 2013," Ryan said in an interview with CNBC.
Because he hails from Wisconsin, an important battleground, Ryan's youthfulness could appeal to a group with whom the president enjoys advantages.
Ryan is considered a lightning rod, and his presence on the GOP ticket will fundamentally change the 2012 race.
Where does Romney stand on the Ryan plan?
Sporting a turtleneck, Paul Ryan, center, back row, is shown here in 1990 with his Miami University fraternity Delta Tau Delta, from the school's yearbook.
Paul Ryan in college fraternity
"It would be a bold choice," CNN senior analyst David Gergen said earlier of a Romney-Ryan ticket. "It would be a risky choice."
But there are upsides.
Ryan will likely energize a GOP base often suspicious of Romney, and add youthful vigor to the race with his energetic debates and campaign methods.
Close friends such as former House colleague Mark Green are adamant Ryan would help across the Midwest.
"I think he does get Wisconsin," Green said. "But I think more importantly he gets that sort of blue-collar conservatism that I think is at the heart of the Republican Party."
For months, Romney has tried to frame the race as a referendum on the first Obama term, specifically the president's economic record.
Adding Ryan to the ticket would mean no escaping an onslaught of Democratic criticism that the Republican ticket would "end Medicare as we know it" as Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York is fond of saying.
One ad, by nonprofit political organization Agenda Project, critical of the Ryan budget showed a man pushing an elderly woman in a wheelchair off a cliff, and ended with the tagline: "Is America beautiful without Medicare? Ask Paul Ryan and his friends in Congress."
Ryan calls the attacks demagoguery and says Obama has failed to put forward serious proposals to reform costly entitlement programs.
This is the "bold" debate conservatives pushing Ryan want, but other Republicans worry it could steer the campaign focus away from the president and onto GOP proposals.
Other potential downsides include Ryan is a House member popular in what was once considered a competitive swing district, but he has never run statewide. He also has no foreign policy experience.
In light of the Sarah Palin 2008 pick, some will question whether the House member is ready to be commander-in-chief.
"He is without question one of the stars of the Republican future over the next 10 to 20 years," Gergen said. "Whether he is ready at this moment, only the campaign trail could tell. And he's going to get, I'll tell you, he is going to take a real beating."
Ryan is also a policy wonk, a self-described nerd who cut his teeth working for conservatives Bill Bennett and Jack Kemp. Friends say it would be a mistake to underestimate his ambition, or his competitive streak.
How do you feel about Romney picking Ryan as his running mate? Let us know on CNN iReport.
CNN's Phil Gast and John King contributed to this report.
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Romney and Ryan, a Wisconsin native, greet supporters during a campaign stop in Waukesha, Wisconsin, on Sunday, August 12.
Ryan speaks after Romney announced him as his running mate in Norfolk, Virginia, on Saturday, August 11.
Romney introduced Ryan as his running mate Saturday in front of the USS Wisconsin. The seven-term congressman is chairman of the House Budget Committee and provides a strong contrast to the Obama administration on fiscal policy.
Romney jokes with Ryan in April during a pancake brunch at Bluemound Gardens in Milwaukee.
Ryan looks on as Romney greets people June 18 during a campaign event in Janesville, Wisconsin.
Ryan speaks while campaigning for Romney at a textile factory in Janesville, Wisconsin, on June 18.
Ryan listens as Ben Bernanke, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, speaks at the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget annual conference in Washington.
Ryan, left, and Romney greet each other on stage April 3 during the primary night gathering at The Grain Exchange in Milwaukee.
Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin shakes hands with his running mate, presumptive Republican president nominee Mitt Romney.
House Budget Chairman Ryan is introduced before speaking about the federal budget at Georgetown University in April.
Ryan holds a news conference in December 2011 in Washington to introduce a package of 10 legislative reforms designed to revamp the budget process.
Ryan looks over papers as he waits for other House Republicans to arrive for a news conference in the Capitol Visitors Center.
Ryan speaks to the media in 2009 about President Barack Obama's 2010 budget proposal.
Ryan, left, and Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire speak to reporters about the 2010 federal budget.
Then-Budget Committee Chairman John M. Spratt Jr., left, and ranking member Ryan listen to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke testify during the House Budget hearing on the economy on January 17, 2008.
Ryan follows President George W. Bush off of Air Force One at General Mitchell International Airport - Air Reserve Station in Milwaukee on July 11, 2006.
Ryan speaks at a Cato Institute briefing on Medicare reform in the Rayburn House Office Building in Washington on July 22, 2003.
Ryan, with his wife Janna and daughter Elizabeth, 2, make their way to a train at Union Station in Washington on January 29, 2004.
Speaker of the House Denis Hastert, left, administers the oath of office to Ryan at the beginning of his first term as representative of Wisconsin on January 6, 1999.
Romney, left, and Ryan wave at supporters in front of the USS Wisconsin.
Romney supporters wait for him to introduce Ryan as his vice presidential running mate.
Romney and Ryan wave to supporters.
Romney supporters sing the U.S. national anthem as they wait for Romney to introduce Ryan as his vice presidential running mate.
Romney and Ryan shake hands as they embark on a four-day, four-state bus tour through Virginia, North Carolina, Florida and Ohio.
Ryan speaks after Romney introduces him as his running mate.
Ryan speaks after Romney introduces him as his vice-presidential pick.
Ryan addresses a crowd of supporters in Norfolk, Virginia.
Mitt Romney, left, announces Rep. Paul Ryan as his running mate.
Romney waves at members of the media as he arrives at the USS Wisconsin to announce Ryan has his running mate.
Romney exits his bus at the campaign event.
A more grown-up Ryan, center, bottom row, appears in 1992 with his Miami University fraternity Delta Tau Delta in the school's yearbook.
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