title: Boehner blasts reported Obama budget as 'wrong direction'
content: ( CNN ) - House Speaker John Boehner said Friday the budget President Barack Obama will soon unveil takes no steps towards finding common ground with Republicans , despite the president 's offer to cut federal entitlement spending .
  `` If the president believes these modest entitlement savings are needed to help shore up these programs , there 's no reason they should be held hostage for more tax hikes . That 's no way to lead and move the country forward , '' Boehner said in a press release .
  The president 's proposal as described to CNN and other news outlets by senior Obama administration officials includes changes to Social Security and Medicare , similar to an offer Obama made to Boehner during the fiscal cliff negotiations in December . That would include a cut of $ 400 billion to Medicare over a decade .
  `` The president and I were not able to reach an agreement late last year because his offers never lived up to his rhetoric , '' Boehner responded . `` Despite talk about so-called balance , the president 's last offer was significantly skewed in favor of higher taxes and included only modest entitlement savings . He said he could go no further toward the middle , and that 's why his last offer was rejected . ''
  The reported entitlement program changes have also received fire from left-leaning groups who argue the changes would hurt vulnerable individuals .
  Obama 's budget also includes tax increases , which Republicans say is a non-starter since taxes were increased on wealthy individuals as part of the final fiscal cliff deal .
  `` In the end , the president got his tax hikes on the wealthy with no corresponding spending cuts , '' Boehner wrote . `` At some point we need to solve our spending problem , and what the president has offered would leave us with a budget that never balances . In reality , he 's moved in the wrong direction , routinely taking off the table entitlement reforms he 's previously told me he could support . ''
  He suggested further that Obama 's so-called charm offensive was to little avail on budget matters .
  `` When the president visited the Capitol last month , House Republicans stated a desire to find common ground and urged him not to make savings we agree upon conditional on another round of tax increases . If reports are accurate , the president has not heeded that call , '' Boehner said .
  Republicans have roundly criticized Obama for missing the February deadline for submitting his budget proposal . The proposal could be released next week , White House officials have said .
  The Republican-led House has previously passed a proposal drafted by Budget Chairman Paul Ryan , R-Wisconsin . It was a budget not warmly received by the Democratic Senate or the White House .
content_original: 7 years ago
  
  (CNN) - House Speaker John Boehner said Friday the budget President Barack Obama will soon unveil takes no steps towards finding common ground with Republicans, despite the president's offer to cut federal entitlement spending.
  
  "If the president believes these modest entitlement savings are needed to help shore up these programs, there's no reason they should be held hostage for more tax hikes. That's no way to lead and move the country forward," Boehner said in a press release.
  
  
  
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  The president's proposal as described to CNN and other news outlets by senior Obama administration officials includes changes to Social Security and Medicare, similar to an offer Obama made to Boehner during the fiscal cliff negotiations in December. That would include a cut of $400 billion to Medicare over a decade.
  
  "The president and I were not able to reach an agreement late last year because his offers never lived up to his rhetoric," Boehner responded. "Despite talk about so-called balance, the president's last offer was significantly skewed in favor of higher taxes and included only modest entitlement savings. He said he could go no further toward the middle, and that's why his last offer was rejected."
  
  The reported entitlement program changes have also received fire from left-leaning groups who argue the changes would hurt vulnerable individuals.
  
  Obama's budget also includes tax increases, which Republicans say is a non-starter since taxes were increased on wealthy individuals as part of the final fiscal cliff deal.
  
  "In the end, the president got his tax hikes on the wealthy with no corresponding spending cuts," Boehner wrote. "At some point we need to solve our spending problem, and what the president has offered would leave us with a budget that never balances. In reality, he's moved in the wrong direction, routinely taking off the table entitlement reforms he's previously told me he could support."
  
  He suggested further that Obama's so-called charm offensive was to little avail on budget matters.
  
  "When the president visited the Capitol last month, House Republicans stated a desire to find common ground and urged him not to make savings we agree upon conditional on another round of tax increases. If reports are accurate, the president has not heeded that call," Boehner said.
  
  Republicans have roundly criticized Obama for missing the February deadline for submitting his budget proposal. The proposal could be released next week, White House officials have said.
  
  The Republican-led House has previously passed a proposal drafted by Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin. It was a budget not warmly received by the Democratic Senate or the White House.