Boehner: 'The House Has Fought with Everything It Has'

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) released a statement urging his caucus not to attempt to block the Senate agreement to end the government shutdown and raise the debt ceiling:

“The House has fought with everything it has to convince the president of the United States to engage in bipartisan negotiations aimed at addressing our country’s debt and providing fairness for the American people under ObamaCare.  That fight will continue.  But blocking the bipartisan agreement reached today by the members of the Senate will not be a tactic for us.  In addition to the risk of default, doing so would open the door for the Democratic majority in Washington to raise taxes again on the American people and undo the spending caps in the 2011 Budget Control Act without replacing them with better spending cuts.  With our nation’s economy still struggling under years of the president’s policies, raising taxes is not a viable option. Our drive to stop the train wreck that is the president’s health care law will continue.  We will rely on aggressive oversight that highlights the law’s massive flaws and smart, targeted strikes that split the legislative coalition the president has relied upon to force his health care law on the American people.”

“Throughout this debate, the public has been rightly focused on Obamacare — for good reason. This law is ravaging our economy, killing jobs, driving up premiums, and driving people off the health care plans they have and like, in droves. Its disastrous rollout is sign of even worse things to come. And the Democrat refusal to delay it reflects a stubborn ideological obsession that will do untold damage to our country. And Republicans remain determined to repeal this terrible law.

“But for today, the relief we hope for is to reopen the government, avoid default, and protect the historic cuts we achieved under the BCA. This is far less than many of us had hoped for. But it’s far better than what some had sought.

“Now it’s time for Republicans to unite behind our other crucial goals.”