White House fires back at Boehner

Speaking at a stimulus act event at the White House, Vice President Biden ripped Boehner’s call to fire top Obama administration economic aides and rebutted his points.

Boehner spoke earlier Tuesday in Cleveland, outlining GOP economic policies and calling for the ouster of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and National Economic Council head Larry Summers.

{mosads}Biden mockingly said, “[That was] very constructive advice, and we thank the leader for that.”

The vice president said Boehner wants to restore Bush administration economic policies that he argues drove the economy into a deep recession.

“Before we arrived in the West Wing, Mr. Boehner and the Republican Party ran the economy literally into the ground,” he said.

“They think that the policies they had in place for eight years during the Bush administration were the right ones,” he added. “I respect their honesty, I respect them for saying what they think.

“Mr. Boehner is nostalgic for those good old days, but the American people are not … They want to move forward.”

His call was echoed by deputy White House spokesman Bill Burton, who also defended the president’s team.

Burton, briefing reporters in Martha’s Vineyard where Obama is vacationing with his family, said Boehner’s speech was a “full-throated defense of what is indefensible.”

Burton said Boehner’s call for Geithner and Summers’ resignations is ironic because they were part of the team that made the hard decisions that have led to economic growth.

Obama is not satisfied with the pace of the recovery, Burton said, but he is encouraged that the economy is moving in the right direction after Republican policies led to millions of lost jobs.

Burton referenced the president’s now-familiar campaign theme that Republicans drove the economy into a ditch, criticizing Boehner for calling for the resignations of the people trying to drive that car out of the ditch.

Burton and other White House officials have sharply criticized Boehner and Republicans for fighting for the extension of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy.

“What was most surprising was his full-throated defense of what is indefensible and that is tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas,” Burton said of Boehner’s speech.