GOP wants Obama plan a la carte

In a warmly worded letter sent to the White House Friday, House Republican leaders gave formal notice that they won’t swallow President Barack Obama’s new jobs proposal without changing the ingredients

They also asked him to send the text of the “American Jobs Act” as an a la carte menu of proposals, rather than a single package, and to detail his plan for offsetting the costs of the new spending he envisions

“The House and our committees will immediately begin the process of reviewing and considering your proposals. We will examine the impact of your proposals on both short and long term economic growth and we will identify modifications and additional ideas that could achieve economic and job growth in a manner that may be more impactful or effective,” House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and Republican Conference Chairman Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) wrote.

“We believe creating long-term, sustainable jobs must be the top priority for elected leaders of both parties, and it is our desire to work with you to find common ground on steps that can be taken to allow our economy to grow and to create those jobs. While we have a different vision in terms of what is needed to boost private-sector job creation in our country, we believe your ideas merit consideration by the Congress, and believe the American people expect them to be given such consideration,” they told Obama. “We look forward to receiving legislative text for any of your ideas in a manner that can be scored by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, and to the upcoming speech you described last night in which you will detail the offsets that will be needed to ensure your proposals are paid for.”

Obama outlined his bill — the text of which won’t be available for another week or two — in an address to a joint session of Congress on Thursday night. Afterward, Republicans said they could agree with him on a handful of proposals but would not accept his bill as an all-or-nothing proposition.

Friday’s letter formalized that point of view, and it noted specific procedural difficulties that could arise should the package be sent as one bill.

As we are certain your advisors have told you, not all your ideas should be packaged in a single legislative vehicle. For instance, due to the structure of Trade Promotion Authority procedures, passage of the free trade agreements with our allies – Colombia, Panama and South Korea – is better achieved moving as stand-alone legislation,” the lawmakers wrote. “We again ask that you send those agreements immediately to the Congress for our consideration and approval.”

The letter also reflects a new strategy from the House GOP: While they’re willing to frustrate the president’s agenda, they’ve said they will try to avoid personalizing their disagreements.

“We share your desire for bipartisan cooperation, and assume that your ideas were not presented as an all-or-nothing proposition, but rather in anticipation that the Congress may also have equally as effective proposals to offer for consideration,” Boehner and his top deputies wrote. “The American people expect us to bring together the best of both parties’ ideas, and it is our desire to work together to find common ground between your ideas and ours. The House is committed to working with our Senate colleagues and your administration to confront our nation’s economic and employment challenges.”