In a not-so-subtle jibe at President Obama for the remarks he made on his bus tour last month, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R., Va.) said questioning the motives and patriotism of other politicians is no way to approach the nation’s economic woes.
Rather, he said lawmakers from both parties should focus on what they have in common, pursuing bipartisan efforts that will encourage growth. “That’s going to require us all not to impute motives or question patriotism,” he said.
One such bipartisan effort would be to give states more flexibility in deciding how to use federal transportation dollars. He said the
president also holds this position.
He praised the president’s decision to pull back a costly EPA ozone regulation and said he hopes to see other expensive proposals pulled back as well.
When his stance on disaster spending was questioned, Cantor said some reporters have incorrectly reported that he is attempting to hold funds hostage. He reiterated that he is “not one for holding up any money.” Since the debate over disaster relief spending is in the Senate,
Cantor said that he believes it should be part of the overall budgetprocess, rather than an ad hoc emergency package.