Rush Limbaugh: Boehner's got to say no to Obama speech

PALM BEACH, Fla. – Speaker of the House John Boehner should outright reject President Obama's request to deliver a speech outlining his jobs plan before a joint session of Congress on Sept. 7, a night that happens to feature a nationally televised debate among Republican presidential candidates.

Rush Limbaugh

So says top-rated radio host Rush Limbaugh, who urged this afternoon, "Boehner's got to say no."

"Why should the Republicans grant the president a joint session of Congress to make a political campaign speech on any date?" Limbaugh asked. "Why should the Republicans handcuff themselves that way?"

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He continued: "The president ought not be allowed to make a campaign speech, which is all this is, there's no national security ... there's no constitutional requirement like State of the Union, nothing. This is a pure campaign speech. And to give it the imprimatur of a speech before a joint session of Congress, there's no way. He doesn't deserve that. That's not warranted. They ought not grant that on any date. ...

"And if they do, the picture is going to be of the president of the United States giving a campaign speech with Republican members of Congress sitting in that chamber acting with respect and so forth and so on. Boehner's got to say no. Now, whether he will, I have no clue."

According to Fox News, Boehner is looking for Obama to speak another day, saying in a letter late this afternoon he'd like the president to pick a different time, and telling GOP members he'd invite Obama to speak on Thursday, Sept. 8. He did not mention the debate. Since the House does not come into session until Sept. 7, with votes scheduled that evening, Boehner expressed concern about the time it would take to conduct the security sweep in time for a presidential speech. 

Regardless of when and where the speech is delivered, Limbaugh was pessimistic about the president's ability to proffer anything beneficial for the U.S. economy.

"There's nothing that Obama can do to create jobs. Nothing," Limbaugh said.

"The only thing Obama can do is to stop doing things that are destroying job creation. If he were really going to announce a jobs bill, you know what he would tell us? Things he's going to stop, regulations he's going to roll back, agenda items that he's going to cease. There's nothing he can do to grow the private sector. He doesn't know the first thing about it anyway."

According to National Journal, White House officials professed to be shocked at any suggestion they'd intentionally step on the planned Republican debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.

"Of course not," said Press Secretary Jay Carney at his daily briefing. Asked how 8 p.m. Wednesday was selected, he responded, "There were a lot of considerations. You have to deal with Congress' schedule. This is one debate of many, that is on one channel of many. That was not enough reason not to have it."

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Republican National Chairman Reince Priebus is not accepting the reasoning, slamming the scheduling as "a thinly veiled political ploy."

He dismissed Carney's contention it was "a coincidence" the speech will be when the debate was planned.

"The American people can see right through that excuse," Priebus said.