BOEHNER: 'The Sequester Is Bad Policy' And 'I Would Hope That It Wouldn't Happen'
Behind a podium displaying the #obamaquester hashtag this morning, House Speaker John Boehner and other Republican leaders called on President Barack Obama to put forward a proposal to replace the looming cuts scheduled to take effect as a result of the sequester.
"The sequester is bad policy," Boehner said. "I would hope that it wouldn't happen. I've made that perfectly clear. It's taking a meat axe to government spending. That's why the President ought to be forthcoming about a plan to replace the sequester."
Boehner reiterated that the House has taken action to replace the sequester with other cuts. He said that it's "time for the Senate to act."
"We mean business Mr. President. We're willing to work with you," House Majority Leader Eric Cantor said.
Boehner also slammed Obama's proposal outlined in his State of the Union address to raise the minimum wage to $9 an hour.
"When you raise the price of employement, guess what happens?" he said. "You get less of it. At a time when Americans are still asking the question, 'Where are the jobs?' why would we want to make it harder for small employers to hire people?"