With the budget fight nearly behind them, both Republicans and Democrats are jockeying for the next fight — and House Speaker John A. Boehner wants it to be on the GOP’s turf of cutting regulations to spur job growth.
In a video released Wednesday morning, Mr. Boehner challenges President Obama and Senate Democrats to take up some of the more than two dozen bills awaiting action in the upper chamber.
“Here in the people’s house we’re focused on getting the economy moving again,” Mr. Boehner says in a voiceover as clips of House lawmakers passing bills plays.
Among those bills are major hot button issues such as building the Keystone pipeline, which has cleared the House and appears to have majority support in the Senate, but which Majority Leader Harry Reid has refused to bring to the floor for a vote.
While the GOP is focusing on rolling back some of Mr. Obama’s moves and pushing for more energy production and less government regulation, Democrats’ major push early next year will be to extend unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless.
The current enhanced benefits end at the end of this year, and Republicans successfully fended off an effort by Democrats to include another round in the budget deal.
For his part, Mr. Obama has repeatedly pushed Congress to boost federal spending on another round of economic stimulus — but has had little luck winning enough support to make headway.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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