The best they can do? Boehner offers nothing more than a warmed-over version of a failed policy

Rep. John Boehner, the Republican leader in the House, laid out his vision Tuesday for the economy, which amounts to a return to the terrible policies of the Bush administration.Boehner sounded all of the tired right-wing themes, calling the Obama administration's policies "job-killing," complaining about the size of government and the national debt. He called for tax cuts and claimed the economy was "stalled by 'stimulus' spending."

Playing to the Tea Party, Boehner tried to take a populist tack, attacking the "powers-that-be in Washington" and the "Washington politicians," and he repeatedly called for a "fresh start" in Washington.

"I have had enough — and the American people have had enough — of Washington politicians talking about wanting to create jobs as a ploy to get themselves re-elected while doing everything possible to prevent jobs from being created," Boehner said.

Perhaps Boehner needs to be reminded that he is the Washington politician he complains about. He's been a member of Congress for 20 years, he's one of the most powerful Republicans in Washington, and his remarks were nothing more than a vacuous campaign stump speech. Boehner is asking Americans to vote Republican and return his party to the majority in Congress. If Democrats are defeated in the House in November, Boehner is in line to become the next speaker.

Boehner said if he is elected speaker he will run the House "differently than it's been run in the past under Democrats or Republicans."

But his rhetoric doesn't match his talk. The policies he has proposed in the past two years show little, if any, difference from what Republican leadership talked about when George W. Bush was president. During Bush's eight years in office, spending and the national deficit went up, and the Republicans' failed economic policies sent the country into the Great Recession.

Still Boehner has the gall to blame President Barack Obama for the poor economy. He called on the president's top economic advisers to resign and said the president should work with Republicans. Instead of diverting attention or trying to shift the blame, Boehner should face the facts: The recession started on Bush's watch, Obama inherited it, and it has been Boehner and his Republican colleagues who have been the obstacle. They have refused to work with the president and tried to block needed measures that would help the economy and protect consumers.

For example, in his speech, Boehner suggested the federal government return spending to 2008 levels. As The Atlantic magazine noted on its website, the Obama administration proposed that in January — and Boehner's spokesman mocked the idea.

If Boehner is right about anything, it's that Americans have had enough of politics as usual. It is time for change, and Boehner and his GOP colleagues can start with their own party. They should drop the rhetoric, stop playing these games, and start doing what's best for the American public.