House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) criticized President Obama’s jobs plan in an economic address in Washington on Thursday, calling it “a poor substitute for the pro-growth policies that are needed to remove barriers to job creation in America.”
In a speech to the Economic Club of Washington, Boehner outlined the Republican plan for job creation and urged the deficit-reduction “supercommittee” to lay the groundwork for an overhaul of the tax code. He indirectly criticized the tax proposals in Obama’s jobs plan, saying they would only make the tax code “more complex” at a time when both parties want to simplify the system.
“It strikes me as odd that at a time when it’s clear that the tax code needs to be fundamentally reformed, the first instinct out of Washington is to come up with a host of new tax credits that make the tax code more complex,” Boehner said, according to his prepared remarks. “It’s probably not realistic to think the joint committee could rewrite the tax code by Nov. 23. But it can certainly lay the groundwork by then for tax reform in the future that will enhance the environment for economic growth.
“The committee can develop principles for broad-based tax reform that will lower rates for individuals and corporations while closing deductions, credits and special carve-outs in our tax code,” Boehner said. “And I hope it will.”
The Speaker reiterated the GOP’s long-held opposition to tax increases, saying they are “not a viable option” for the deficit supercommittee. But he voiced support for closing tax loopholes, which could include tax breaks for oil and gas companies that Democrats have been clamoring to scrap for years.
The Brandt Standard 
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