Obama Tells GOP That Both Side Are To Blame For 'Sour Climate' In Washington
House GOP leader John Boehner of Ohio gave the president a copy of the Republican Party's "solutions" before Obama spoke. Charles Dharapak/AP hide caption
House GOP leader John Boehner of Ohio gave the president a copy of the Republican Party's "solutions" before Obama spoke.
Charles Dharapak/APPresident Barack Obama was in Baltimore today to speak to the "other side" -- Republican members of the House -- at their issues conference.
We've added updates below, so be sure to click your "refresh" button:
Update at 3:15 p.m. ET. As promised, here is the audio from the event. It begins with introductions:
Update at 1:33 p.m. ET: The event just ended. We'll post the audio from it as soon as we get it processed.
Update at 1:20 p.m. ET: The president was just asked by a Republican friend from his home state of Illinois, Rep. Peter Roskam, "how do we move forward?" when "the politics in the Democratic caucus" keep GOP ideas from being considered.
Obama said "a tone of civility, instead of slash and burn, would be helpful." And, he said, "both sides can take some blame for a sour climate on Capitol Hill."
What he will do, the president added, will be to "bring Republican and Democratic leadership together on a more regular basis with me."
Update at 1:15 p.m. ET: Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., just told Obama that Democratic leaders in Congress have been ignoring Republican economic proposals for the past year.
Obama said he reads the Republican proposals and that "the good ideas, we take."
But, he added, "if there's uniform opposition because the Republican caucus doesn't get 100% or 80% of what you want, then it's going to be hard to get a deal done."
Update at 1:04 p.m. ET: Speaking about the debate over health care, Obama just told the GOP lawmakers that the way many of them have described his proposals "you'd think this thing was some Bolshevik plot" even though he believes it's a "pretty centrist" plan.
"Most independent observers would say it's actually similar to what many Republicans proposed to Bill Clinton during his debate," the president added.
"I'm having fun," he also told the Republicans, referring to this meeting with them.
Update at 12:50 p.m. ET: How about a line veto, Obama is asked. "There isn't a president out there who wouldn't love to have it," he says.
Update at 12:38 p.m. ET: Will Obama support, as President Kennedy did, an "across-the-board" cut in taxes, Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Va., asked.
"I may not support a tax cut for Warren Buffett," Obama said, as he explained why he won't necessarily go along with cuts that benefit the wealthy.
Update at 12:35 p.m. ET: The first question for the president came from Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind., who challenged him for not taking up more of the Republicans' ideas for how to stimulate the economy.
The president responded, in part, by saying that the stimulus he did sign into law was not "radical." A third of it, he said, was devoted to tax cuts.
Pence pointed out that the economy is not in as good shape as the administration said it would be by now. Obama's response? That "we underestimated how severe the job losses were going to be" -- but that most of the job losses happened early last year before any of his policies could be put in place.
Update at 12:27 p.m. ET: At the conclusion of his remarks, Obama said to the lawmakers that Democrats and Republicans need to be can't be "politicians first" -- but rather should be "partners for progress."
But, he added, "if we can't break free from partisan gridlock ... (and) move past the politics of no ... I still have to meet my responsibilities as president."
Update at 12:20 p.m. The president just gave the Republicans his pitch for a tax credit to spur job growth. Here's how he explained it earlier today at another appearance in Baltimore, according to a White House transcript:
"Today, I'm proposing what I believe is the best way to cut taxes while promoting hiring by small businesses: through a tax credit for companies that add workers or increase salaries this year. Now is the perfect time for this kind of incentive because the economy is growing, but businesses are still hesitant to start hiring again. The economy is growing, but job growth is lagging. Companies are recovering but not yet taking that next step and taking on somebody full time. And while businesses will always be the engines of job creation in this country, government can create the conditions for those businesses to expand and hire more workers.
So here's how the tax credit would work. Employers, like Terry, would get a tax credit of up to $5,000 for each and every employee that they add in 2010, and you would get a tax break for increases in salaries as well. So if you raise wages for employees making under $100,000, we'd refund your payroll taxes for every dollar that you increase those wages faster than inflation.
Update at 12:16 p.m. ET: "What's required by all of us," Obama said a moment ago, "is to do what's right for the country. ... There are things more important than poll numbers."
Update at 12:10 p.m. ET: "I don't think the American people want us to focus on our job security," Obama just told the group. "They want us to focus on their job security."