President Obama on Friday blamed the Republican anti-tax stance for not being able to avoid looming automatic budget cuts set to take effect later today.
“I have offered negotiations around that kind of balanced approach, and so far we have gotten rebuffed because what Speaker Boehner and the Republicans have said is we cannot do any revenue,” Obama told an Associated Press reporter. “We cannot do a dime’s worth of revenue. So what more do you think I should do? I just wanted to qualify. Because if people have a suggestion, I am happy to — this is a room full of smart folks.”
Pressed whether Democrats shoulder part of the responsibility for sequestration, Obama said: “I am not a dictator, I am the president. I cannot have Secret Service block the doorway. I understand. I know that this has been some of the conventional wisdom that has been floating around Washington, that somehow, even though most people agree that I am being reasonable, and most people agree that I am being fair, the fact that they do not take it means that somehow I should do a Jedi mindmeld with these folks and convince them to do what is right.”
