Boehner Says The Government Should Share Responsibility For The BP Spill

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) suggested Thursday morning that the federal government should share responsibility for the oil spill off the Gulf Coast.

"I think the people responsible in the oil spill, BP and the federal government, should take full responsibility for [the oil spill]," Boehner said during a press briefing.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-Calif.) office claimed that Boehner's remarks signaled his support for using public funds BP to help pay for the damage caused by the environmental disaster.

"House Republican Leader John Boehner ... declared that American taxpayers should bailout the Big Oil giant," a press release from the Speaker's office stated. "House Democrats are siding with American taxpayers. BP should be held accountable."

Boehner's staff told several media outlets that the comments were only meant to reflect that the government should be responsible for oversight, and not the costs accrued by the clean up.

During the briefing Boehner also criticized the amount hearings being held on Capitol Hill to investigate the spill.

"Well, this is congress at it's best," Boehner joked, eliciting laughter from the journalists in attendance. "Why the hell don't we get the oil stopped ... figure out what the hell went wrong, and then have the hearing and get the damn law fixed?"

Boehner Bashes Obama For Relying Too Much On Luck

By Sofia Sanchez
University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Republicans are voicing a new criticism against President Barack Obama. On Thursday, one of the top Republicans in Congress told reporters that the President and his administration are hardly inspiring confidence in their ability to effectively manage the country's national security.

"The Obama administration has spoon-fed the American people with bland reassurances that [accused terrorist Faisal Shazhad] was a lone wolf,” said House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio).

Boehner said Democrats are not fit to fight the war on terror because of their refusal to admit that the nation is, in fact, engaged in war. He criticized the administration for lacking a real comprehensive strategy to fight the war.

"Trying to fight a war on terror, while at the same time refusing its existence," he said. "Democrats can’t have it both ways."

Boehner blasted the administration for what he called a plan based on luck.

“Yes, we’ve been lucky, but luck is not an effective strategy for fighting the terrorist threat,” he said. “This is a nation at war and stopping at nothing to confront and defeat the terrorist threat...is how we best protect the American people and set an example for the rest of the world.”

Boehner: I Support The President's Afghanistan Decision

Travis Martinez, University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) stated Thursday that he supports President Barack Obama's decision to send an additional 30,000 troops into Afghanistan.

“I support his plan. I had the opportunity yesterday to speak with General McChrystal. He assured me, that he has what he needs to achieve his mission. Now it’s our job to give them all the support necessary as their plan is implemented,” said Boehner.

In the months leading up to the president's announcement, Boehner made repeated calls to have Afghanistan commander testify before Congress.

Boehner also responded to comments made by Obama this week in which the president accused Republicans of scaring business owners into not hiring employees through their statements against his policies.

“The president accused us of scaring employers in America and [said] it was our fault they’re not hiring. The fact is, is that double digit unemployment is scaring employers and scaring the American people,” said Bohner. “His job killing agenda is making it worse for all Americans. We have offered solutions and the president repeats 'we’ll get back to you'”.

House GOP'ers Fight To Save Senior Benefits

Travis Martinez - University of New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) and fellow Republicans argued on Wednesday against cuts in benefits for Medicare and Medicare Advantage recipients.

“Poll after Poll shows that America’s seniors are the group that has the greatest concerns about government takeover of health care, that’s because proposals cut Medicare benefits that seniors rely on,” said Boehner.

The Republican Leader used Wednesday's press conference to promote the his party's healthcare website, healthcare.gop.gov, where users can view “better solutions” to fix the nation's health care system.

House Republican Conference Chair Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.), who also attended the press conference, invoked words from President Barack Obama’s campaign.

Responding to then-Senator Obama's pledge that Americans who like their health care plan would not be forced to give it up, Pence said, “ I guess he wasn’t talking about American senior citizens," adding that "under recent legislation, $162 billion will be cut from the popular Medicare Advantage."