Noting that legislation to “opt out” of Obamacare has been introduced in 36 states, Congressman John Boehner (R-OH) and Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) have sent a letter to White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel asking that the invitation to the planned Feb. 25 health care “summit” at the White House be extended to the nation’s governors and state legislators.
“Will the President be inviting officials and lawmakers from the states to participate in this discussion?” Boehner and Cantor asked Emanuel. “As you may know, legislation has been introduced in at least 36 state legislatures, similar to the proposal just passed by the Democratic-controlled Virginia State Senate, providing that no individual may be compelled to purchase health insurance. Additionally, governors of both parties have raised concerns about the additional costs that will be passed along to states under both the House and Senate bills.”
In a statement released Monday night, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs criticized the Boehner-Cantor letter, but did not address the question of whether state officials would be given a role in the Feb. 25 event.
“One of the fundamental problems with the approach the Obama Administration has taken to health care is that it seems rooted in a Washington-knows-best mentality. Excluding the voices of America’s governors and state legislators from the proposed ’summit’ would compound this error,” Boehner said. “There’s a revolt going on in the states right now against the bills Washington Democrats are trying to impose on America. The White House may want to pretend the revolt isn’t happening, but it’s real.”
Boehner and Reps. Devin Nunes (R-CA) and Mike Rogers (R-MI) last year launched the GOP State Solutions project, an initiative aimed at highlighting solutions put forth by reform-minded governors and state officials outside the Beltway. Through the State Solutions project, House Republicans have been working with state officials, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), and grass-roots activists to advance state-level legislation declaring individual citizens’ freedom against intrusive health care mandates from the federal government.
Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) today released the following web video highlighting the better solutions Republicans have been offering all year long on the budget, energy, putting Americans back to work and health care. Boehner appears on the video with the Better Solutions document House Republicans presented President Obama last week that counters the baseless claims that Republicans are the party of no ideas.
Boehner says:
“This is a time of great challenge for many in our country. Republicans believe in the American people – and throughout the past year, on issues ranging from health care to jobs, we’ve offered common-sense solutions aimed at getting government off Americans’ backs and unleashing the greatness of our people.
“We presented President Obama with this book of our better solutions last Friday in a meeting with House Republicans, and we want to share it with you, too.”
The Better Solutions book is a compilation of GOP policy alternatives that were offered between January of 2009 and the present to address the nation’s top priorities. To download a PDF copy of the Better Solutions book Boehner presented to President Obama, click here. The Better Solutions document and other information on GOP reform alternatives is also available at solutions.gop.gov.
Each year, Congressman John Boehner is proud to nominate residents of Ohio’s 8th District to the Air Force, Merchant Marines, Military and Naval Academies. At a reception in West Chester in December, Boehner congratulated this year’s 25 nominees on their willingness to serve our country.
“Nominating a select group of young men and women to our elite Service Academies each year is one of my most enjoyable – and important – duties as a Member of Congress,” Boehner said. “For those of you who will attend one of nation’s service academies, you will become part of the greatest fighting force in the world. You will defend our freedom, keep our country safe, and help spread democracy throughout the world.”
After receiving nominations from Boehner, applicants then entered a competitive selection process with other nominees for acceptance. Last week, Boehner announced the appointment of three 8th District nominees:
Abigail Buns to the Air Force Academy. Abigail is a Senior at Lakota East High School where she is an active member of the Varsity Girls’ Soccer Team, Latin Club, Student Government, and Student Newspaper. Buns is also involved in the community, where she has served as a Reach Out Lakota Volunteer and a Special Olympics Torch Run Volunteer. Abigail lives in West Chester with her parents Edward and Lori Buns.
Patrick Mescher to the Military Academy. Mark is a Senior at Versailles High School where he is a Varsity member of the baseball, basketball and football teams, and takes classes at Edison State Community College in Piqua through Post Secondary Enrollment Options Program (PSEOP). Mescher is also active in his community, where he serves as youth leader at his church, President of the YMCA Leaders Club, and an Ambassador for the National Society of High School Scholars. Mark resides with his parents, Kenneth and Sabrina Mescher in Versailles.
Kristie Kiracofe to the Military Academy. Kristie is a Senior at Eaton High School where she is a member of the National Honor Society, and serves as a Peer Leader and Senior Class Treasurer. Kiracofe is also actively involved with the Cross Country, Swim and Track Teams at Eaton High. Outside of school, Kiracofe is active in her church, and a junior volunteer at Reid Hospital. Kristie currently lives in Eaton with her parents John and Susan Kiracofe.
In the coming weeks, Boehner hopes to announce more the appointments of more 8th District nominees. Stay tuned for more news as it becomes available. To find out more about the service academies and the nomination process, click here.
In an appearance this morning on NBC’s Meet the Press, Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) discussed the Better Solutions that Republicans have been offering all year long on the budget, energy, putting Americans back to work, and health care – the same alternative solutions that President Obama acknowledged on Friday, putting to rest once and for all baseless claims by members of his own Administration that Republicans are the “party of no ideas.” Boehner also discussed the economy, wasteful Washington spending, and health care, noting that Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and other Democratic leaders continue to plot ways to pass their government takeover of health care. Following are highlights of Boehner’s appearance and video of the interview:
Boehner on Republicans Standing on Principle and Offering Better Solutions:
“Listen, there are parts of the President’s agenda that we’ve been supportive of. But as a political party, and in the Minority, on the Hill, we have an obligation to the American people to stand on principle. That’s why we’ve all stood and voted against the ‘stimulus’ bill, that was supposed to be about creating jobs immediately, yet three million Americans have lost their job. The President said unemployment wouldn’t exceed eight percent, now it’s over ten. Whether it’s his budget, with trillion-dollar deficits for as far as the eye can see, their National Energy Tax they call cap-and-trade, or this government takeover of health care – Republicans have an obligation to stand on principle and to fight these proposals. But, but, at the same time, to offer better solutions. We’ve offered better solutions all year long.”
Boehner on the President's Visit to the GOP Retreat:
“I thought it was a very good afternoon. We invited the President to come because we wanted to have a dialogue and we’re glad that the President accepted. I thought our Members were honest and I thought the President was honest. It’s not that we’re going to agree on everything, but the American people sent us all here to Washington to do what we can to help solve the problems we have in our country. … I told the president, when we convene with you and when we agree with you we will stand tall with you. as we did on Afghanistan, as we did on Iraq, as we did on things like teacher quality and a number of areas. When it comes to health care, we could agree on some common-sense steps to make our health care system work better. But we are not going to put the government in charge of people’s health care. And it’s something that is a fundamental difference here. And most of America has already said no to this big government takeover.”
Boehner on Americans Yelling 'Stop!" to the Democrats' Job-Killing Policies:
“If you look at the policies we’ve seen over the course of this year from the Administration and his Democratic colleagues in Congress, they are all these leftist proposals. The people of Massachusetts, the people of Virginia, the people of New Jersey are sending a pretty loud signal just like the other 47 states, to Washington, saying stop. This is way more than we ever wanted Washington to do.”
Boehner on Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid Scheming to Pass Their Gov't Takeover of Health Care:
“We’ve seen all week Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Reid continuing to scheme and plot trying to find some way to get their big government takeover of health care enacted. So, I do think they are having problems, but I think Republicans are going to continue to be vigilant. I think the American people need to stay engaged because I’m watching the movement on the Hill. They are still trying to find a way, even after Massachusetts, the election there, they are still trying to find a way, to shove this down the throats of the American people, and the American people are saying, ‘no, stop.’ And what we need to do is scrap the big government takeover bill, and let’s start over. Let’s start over on common-sense steps that we can take to make our system work better. No one in Washington thinks our current health care system is perfect and certainly not Republicans. We outlined our eight or nine ideas about how we can make it work better. But we want to preserve the best health care system in the world and we don’t want the government to take control of it.”
Boehner on President Obama's Spending Cut Proposal: 'We Can Do Much Better Than That":
“I think the President’s proposal on freezing non-security domestic spending is a good first step. But it’s only $15 billion for each of the next three years. I think we can do much better than that. I don’t think any agency of the Federal government should be exempt from rooting out wasteful spending or unnecessary spending. And I frankly, I would agree at the Pentagon, there’s got to be wasteful spending there, unnecessary spending there, it all ought to be eliminated. We should be going through this budget line by line and asking the question, is this spending worth having to borrow money that our kids and grandkids have to pay back. That’s the real question. If we went through the budget line by line like that, I think there’s a lot more spending we could cut.”
Boehner on President Obama's Call to Repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell":
"In the middle of two wars and in the middle of this giant security threat, why would we want to get into this debate? While at a time when Americans are asking where are the jobs, why do we want to get in this debate? while we're fighting over health care and trying to find some way to come to common ground, why do we want to get into a divisive debate that will do nothing more than distract the real debate that should occur here about helping to get our economy going again and getting American people back to work."
Today during a radio interview with Brian Thomas on 55KRC (Cincinnati), Congressman John Boehner discussed President Obama’s proposed discretionary spending freeze, saying if the President were truly serious about cutting spending, Republicans and Democrats should work together now to go through the budget line-by-line to find additional ways to cut spending. Turning to health care, Boehner encouraged the American people to remain “vigilant and involved” as Washington Democrats’ continue to push a government takeover of health care that will increase taxes, raise premiums and cut Medicare for seniors. Boehner also outlined the better solutions Republicans are offering to tackle the challenges Ohioans are facing every day, starting with a health care plan that will lower premiums by up to 10 percent. Following are excerpts from the audio. To listen to the interview in its entirety, click here.
Discussing President Obama’s ‘Spending Freeze’ To Save $15 Billion In 2011, Boehner Says If The President Is Truly Serious About Cutting Spending, ‘There Is No Reason To Wait To Stop The Spending Spree’
“It’s $15 billion, which is a lot of money, but we are going to have trillion-dollar deficits and he is going to save $15 billion. I think we can do a lot better, there is no reason for us to wait to stop the spending spree, and we’ve got to stop it right now. There is no reason why we shouldn’t look through every line of the federal budget and decide whether it is really necessary to spend money that we don’t have on whatever that issue is. And if we went through the budget with that kind of view point, I think we could cut $100 billion from the budget without even blinking an eye. Going through the budget one by one, line by line we can actually find ways to cut spending, we can find them, but we have to have the will to do it, and we can’t wait until next year.” [Audio]
Boehner Says Republicans Hear Americans Saying ‘Enough Is Enough’ Of Washington Democrats’ Big- Government Agenda, Are Offering Better Solutions
“All of our members voted against the wasteful stimulus plan, a trillion dollar plan that hasn’t created jobs. All of us voted against their budget, which was nothing more than the largest deficits that you could even imagine, trillion dollars on average as far as the eye can see. We voted against ‘cap and trade,’ we voted against health care, and in each instance we offered what we thought was a better solution. You can go to healthcare.gop.gov, and see our health care proposals, eight or nine ideas, that take a common sense, step by step approach to fixing the current system to make it work better for more people. So we’ve had better solutions I think all year. This is not rocket science. Americans want some common sense here in Washington. They want us to spend the money they are sending here to Washington – their tax money – they want us to spend it prudently on things that are in our nation’s interest.” [Audio]
Boehner Warns Washington Democrats’ Will Stop At Nothing To Pass Their Government Takeover Of Health Care
“They’re continuing on working on tweaking the Senate bill and looking for a way to get it enacted into law. These people are not listening to the American people. As I’ve told people over the last 6 months, it is really almost impossible for Congress to pass something that the people have flat out rejected. And the American people have flat out rejected this government takeover of our health care system. [Washington Democrats] are continuing to try and push this. I don’t know what tricks they have up their sleeves, I’ve been watching this for quite awhile, but if the American people remain vigilant and involved in this process it won’t happen.
“They’re tired of all these backroom deals and hanky-panky that went on to get this bill through the Senate. I think there are enough Democrat members who have heard the call of the American people to say ‘enough is enough,’ so they are going to fool around for awhile, but still, if the American people stay involved in this fight, it won’t happen.” [Audio]
Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) today announced that the Republican Leader’s website will host a live blog of President Obama’s State of the Union address. The GOP Leader Blog will provide real-time fact-checking of the President’s remarks and lay out Republicans’ better solutions to the challenges working families are facing.
“President Obama’s rhetoric is often detached from reality, so it’s important there be a place Americans can go to get the facts about his job-killing agenda,” Boehner said. “We’ll also be using this live blog to discuss Republicans’ better solutions to the challenges working families and small business owners are facing. House Republicans have had great success over the last year using the Internet and social media to connect with the American people. This live blog will not only provide a place to find GOP better solutions, visitors can take advantage of the open commenting feature to exchange ideas with House Republicans and each other. Working together, we can hold Washington Democrats accountable.”
Numerous reports have confirmed House Republicans’ domination of YouTube, Twitter, and social media. Politifact.com says Leader Boehner “is correct when he boasts that the House GOP dominates the Democrats on Twitter, YouTube and other social media in Congress.”
House Republicans Dominate Twitter:
• “The Republican leadership in the House is both aggressive and popular on Twitter. The party’s top two members in the House - John A. Boehner of Ohio and Eric Cantor of Virginia, respectively - have the most followed Twitter accounts in the chamber. Mr. Boehner and the No. 3 Republican in the House, Mike Pence of Indiana, had also combined to send out more than 3,000 Tweets.” (The New York Times, 1/13/10)
• “A report on lawmakers’ use of Twitter is out today and the results may surprise. ‘Twongress: The Power of Twitter in Congress’ by Mark Senak, a Democrat, finds that as of this month, Republican House members have sent out 529% more tweets than their Democratic counterparts. Notable tweeters include Arizona GOP Sen. John McCain, who has the most followers of any senator, and House Minority Leader John Boehner, who has the most followers compared to his GOP colleagues.” (The Wall Street Journal, 1/14/10)
• “Though Barack Obama commanded the new media landscape during his 2008 presidential campaign, House Republicans in particular have been texting circles around the Democrats…The study found that of the 132 congressional lawmakers using Twitter, 89 are Republicans and 43 are Democrats. Only slightly more Republicans in the Senate used Twitter, but in the House, 75 Republicans count themselves as part of the Twitter scene, compared with 32 Democrats. Those Republicans on Twitter also are using it far more enough than Democrats. In the House, Republicans dominate the list of most-followed politicians.” (Fox News, 1/15/10)
• “GOP members of Congress have more than twice as many Twitter followers than their Democratic counterparts and tweet five times more often. Minority Leader John Boehner may look like a character from Mad Men, but the Don Draper of the House has a ‘director of new media…” (The Washington Examiner, 1/17/10)
House Republicans Dominate YouTube:
• “Though the Democrats captured the majority of the seats in Congress, 89% of Republicans have channels, compared to just 74% of Democrats...Eight of the top 10 most-viewed and most-subscribed YouTube channels in Congress are from the GOP.” (YouTube’s Citizentube, 1/21/10)
• “Democrats may have been credited with more tech savvy in 2008, but Republican lawmakers are more popular on YouTube...They're also using YouTube more than their Democratic counterparts: 89 percent of Republicans in Congress have YouTube channels, compared to 74 percent of Democrats...Republicans have made a concerted effort to close the tech gap and catch up to Democrats since the 2008 election.” (The Atlantic, 1/21/10)
Delivering the weekly Republican address, Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) provides a prebuttal to President Obama’s upcoming State of the Union address. Boehner says Republican Scott Brown’s victory in the Massachusetts special election gives Washington Democrats a choice: work with Republicans to create jobs and get our economy moving again or double down on the job-killing policies that are making matters worse. Boehner also outlines Republicans’ better solutions to address today’s challenges, including a no-cost jobs plan and the only health care bill that would lower premiums up to 10 percent.
President Obama is holding a town hall meeting at Lorain County Community College in Elyria, Ohio, near Cleveland, today, the same day that Ohio’s unemployment rate increased from 10.6 percent to 10.9 percent. In fact, a CNN report this morning showed that a total of 43 states reported rising jobless rates in December. As families and small businesses continue to struggle, everyone in Ohio, and indeed all Americans, are asking "Where are the jobs?" But all they are getting from the Democrats who control Washington is more spending and more debt. The Chicago Tribune’s blog “The Swamp” chronicles the response from Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) to the president’s trip today:
In Washington, House Minority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican who has long hammered Obama with a repeating refrain of “Where are the Jobs?” said today that the president has failed to deliver on a promise of jobs that he has made before in the Buckeye State.
“When he last visited Elyria, candidate Obama promised that as president he would enact a ‘job creation agenda.”’ Boehner said today.
“Yet for the past year, Ohioans have watched anxiously as Washington Democrats’, with the approval of President Obama, have pushed a job-killing agenda that includes a ‘stimulus’ that isn’t working, a government takeover of health care that will raise taxes... a ‘cap and trade’ national energy tax (and other measures) that will devastate Ohio’s economy and kill jobs at a time we can least afford it.”
(President Barack Obama is pictured above with Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) landing in Cleveland today for a tour and town-hall styled meeting in Lorain County. Photo by David Richard / AP. See the rest of the story and the president’s prepared remarks below:)
Noting the newest report of unemployment in Ohio today, the Republican House leader said: “A jobless recovery is a far cry from what Ohio’s hard-working families were promised.”
“Just three days have passed since voters in Massachusetts, one of the bluest of blue states, delivered the president a clear, stinging indictment of his big-government agenda by electing Republican Scott Brown to fill the U.S. Senate seat held for 47 years by the late Ted Kennedy,’’ Boehner wrote. “Many Democrats lost in the upside-down world that is Washington are still wondering, how could this be?”
“Tuesday’s results should come as no surprise, however,’’ he wrote. “For more than nine months, a political rebellion has been brewing as Americans have watched with angst as Washington Democrats have pushed job-killing policies that have only made a bad jobs situation even worse. Nowhere is this more evident than in the state of Ohio.”
At his weekly press briefing today, Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) warned that Democrats will face a public firestorm if they try to shove their unpopular and costly government takeover of health care through Congress. In the wake of the Massachusetts special election, Boehner said that President Obama and Democratic leaders in Washington now face a choice between working with Republicans and turning their backs on the American people. Addressing the “deficit commission” Democrats are reportedly discussing, Boehner said this proposal would ultimately stack the deck in favor of tax hikes and Republicans are ready to work in a bipartisan way to stop Washington’s spending binge immediately, rather than punting the matter to a commission. Finally, Boehner expressed his continued concern about Washington Democrats’ “pre-9/11 mentality” on national security and continued to call for a comprehensive strategy to confront and defeat the terrorist threat. Following are brief excerpts from Boehner’s weekly press briefing:
Dems Can Work With Republicans or Turn Their Backs on the American People:
“President Obama and Democrat leaders in Washington face a choice: they can work with Republicans on common-sense policies to create jobs, or they can turn their backs on the American people. Thus far, it sounds like the President and the Speaker plan to ignore what happened in Massachusetts, what happened in New Jersey, what happened in Virginia. They are still scheming and scrambling to find a way to pass their government takeover of health care.”
Boehner Warns of Public Firestorm if Dems Try to Pass Gov't Takeover of Health Care:
“Rank-and-file House Democrats and union bosses aren’t going to let them pass the Senate bill. And cobbling together something that could pass the Senate’s ‘reconciliation’ process is clearly, I think, a non-starter. The bottom line is: nobody wants this bill but Washington special interests, and if they jam it through, I think they are going to face a firestorm from the American public. This morning when I picked up CQ, I couldn’t help but notice this headline of this article, ‘Democrats look to finesse their messaging.’ Oh my God, if they think it’s their messaging, then they are really out of touch with what the American people are saying.”
Boehner Says American People Have Rejected Out-of-Touch Washington Democrats' Job Killing Agenda:
“Listen, what we’ve learned in Massachusetts is this: Democrats aren’t listening to the people. And I think that’s why Scott Brown is the new senator-elect from Massachusetts. Republicans are listening. And right now, the American people are asking, ‘where is the jobs?’ and out-of-touch Washington Democrats are responding with their job-killing agenda. You know, they’ve got their ‘cap and trade’ bill – their national energy tax – they are continuing to try and find a way to move through the Senate. Tax hikes on middle class families and small businesses who are trying to save, invest, and get the economy going again. Spending that’s going to put a mountain of debt on the backs of our kids and grandkids. And now, the President is trying to put together some backroom deal to create a commission that might someday reduce spending here in Washington. But his budget will still doubles the national debt in five years, it triples the debt in ten years. And this commission that he’s proposing is going to stack the deck in favor of more tax hikes on the American people. I think, instead of more commissions and more talk, what the President and Democrats ought to do is work with Republicans to cut spending and to do it now.”
Boehner on the Need for a Comprehensive Strategy to Confront and Defeat the Terrorist Threat:
“Finally, let’s not forget another issue that Senator-elect Brown used effectively in his campaign, and that’s the issue of national security. Events like the attempted airline bombing on Christmas Day should remind us that we are at war with dangerous extremists who will stop at nothing to kill Americans. Yesterday, the Director of National Intelligence told a Senate panel that he believes it was a mistake to handle that terrorist like a common criminal. And tomorrow is the first anniversary of President Obama’s executive order to import deadly terrorists into the United States, and give them the rights of American citizens. Both of these political decisions reflect a pre-9/11 mentality, and I hope the President will reconsider that and work with us to develop a comprehensive plan to confront the terrorist threat and to keep America safe.”
In an appearance on Fox News’ On the Record with Greta Van Susteren, Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) said that the Massachusetts special election was another clear indication of the political rebellion brewing in America. Boehner warned that Democrats in Washington still plan to try and shove their unpopular and costly government takeover of health care through Congress, but made clear that Republicans will continue to stand with the American people in working to defeat this bill, while offering better solutions to lower health care premiums by up to 10 percent. Following are the full video and excerpts from the interview:
On the Political Rebellion Brewing in America:
“I’ve been telling people for nine months that there’s a political rebellion going on in America. We saw it manifest itself in August with people showing up to these town hall meetings, and we saw it manifest itself again in New Jersey and in Virginia when two Republicans were elected governor. It manifested itself again last night in Massachusetts of all places. The American people are saying ‘enough is enough.’ And while it was a lot about health care, it’s not just health care. It’s all the spending and debt that’s being accumulated here. It’s their national energy tax. It’s their -- bringing the terrorists to America to put them on trial. The American people are opposed to all of these policies, and they are saying, ‘stop.’ Our concerns are about the economy and asking the question, ‘where are the jobs?’”
Boehner on Republicans Standing With the American People to Defeat the Dems' Health Care Bill:
“The speaker says full speed ahead. We are going to do this health care bill one way or another, defying what the American people are saying. It looks to me, from everything I’ve heard thus far, that they are going to find a way by hook or by crook to shove this bill through the House and to the president’s desk. I’m not sure how they’re going to do it. I think their options clearly got very limited last night. But they’re determined to get this done. And I can tell you that Republicans are going to stand with the American people in doing everything we can to oppose this. But we need the American people to stay engaged in this fight, because if the American people stay engaged, we can stop this bill.”
Boehner on the President's Upcoming State of the Union Speech:
“If I were the president, I would acknowledge what has happened over the last year. While people like the president, and, frankly, I like the president, his policies, though, are way out of step with what the American people were expecting from him, and certainly out of step with any ability to work with Republicans. We’ve offered to work with the president all year. We’ve been shut out, shut out, and shut out. And so if I were the president, I would come before the American people and say, listen, I’ve heard you loud and clear. I’m going to make a renewed effort to keep my campaign promises to work in a more bipartisan way on things we can come together on to help improve our economy and get people back to work.”
Boehner on Whether Republicans Were Gloating About Scott Brown's Massachusetts Victory:
“No gloating. … No, no. This was a win for the American people and a win for the people of Massachusetts. And it is really about them winning. All I want to tell the American people is we’re going to stand with them and fight this fight, and win.”
