Randy Altschuler, left, and Tim Bishop

In the hours following Saturday’s announcement that Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan would join Mitt Romney on the GOP ticket this November, both Congressman Tim Bishop and his opponent, Randy Altschuler, released statements to the media on the selection.

Here’s what they had to say:

Tim Bishop (D-Southampton)

“A budget is a country’s values represented by numbers, and Paul Ryan’s Randy Altschuler-approved budget doesn’t represent the values of Suffolk County. Altschuler, Ryan, and Romney all believe in giving additional tax breaks to millionaires while shifting the tax burden onto middle class families. They believe in slashing Social Security and making seniors pay $6,400 more for Medicare benefits, but they won’t even consider eliminating unjustified tax breaks for oil companies, despite their bloated profits.

“The Altschuler-approved Ryan Budget would reduce taxes by over a quarter million dollars for the very wealthy, while increasing taxes on the middle class by an average of $2,700. The solution to our fiscal problems requires the kind of balanced approach I’ve advocated. I will continue to reject the plan of Altschuler, Romney, and Ryan that seeks to solve our problems on the backs of seniors and the middle class.”

Randy Altschuler (R-St. James)

“Tim Bishop is a failed Washington politician who has been caught abusing his power to enrich his own family and friends, while repeatedly voting for trillions of dollars in higher taxes, more spending and irresponsible debt that have helped to drive more than 30,000 jobs off of Long Island. His support of President Obama’s big government takeover of healthcare will destroy even more jobs while raising taxes on the middle class and cutting $500 billion from Medicare.

“Governor Romney’s pick of Congressman Paul Ryan today signals that he is willing to do what Congressman Bishop has never done, and that is have an honest conversation with the American people about the serious economic and fiscal issues facing this country and pursue real reforms that will restore fiscal responsibility and revitalize our economy. I support this pick and look forward to working with them to put America back on the right track.”