Obama to GOP: Don't Make Me Veto Spending Bill

President Obama issued a formal statement yesterday threatening to veto any spending bill the House GOP devises that doesn’t meet his specifications. “If the president is presented with a bill that undermines critical priorities or national security … the president will veto the bill,” the statement read, according to the Hill. It argued that the GOP’s current proposals would “sharply undermine core government functions” and reduce defense spending below levels “needed to meet vital military requirements.”

The president also promised to veto any bill with earmarks, but Republicans have promised to leave those off. Defense spending, on the other hand, looks contentious; the House Armed Services Committee is trying to lop $15 billion off Robert Gates’ proposed budget, something Chairman Buck McKeon worries isn’t possible. “Boehner’s in a box right now,” he tells Politico. House leadership “worked out what they thought was workable, and ... conservatives kind of told them it wasn’t enough. He has to get some kind of deal.” (More Barack Obama stories.)