House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) today issued the following statement addressing the need to stop the president’s small business tax hike, which is set to take effect three months from today and, according to an independent report from Ernst & Young, would cost our economy more than 700,000 jobs:

“Due to President Obama’s failure to lead, small business owners stand to see their taxes go up in three months’ time, a sucker punch that would cost our economy more than 700,000 jobs.  Also looming is the president’s ‘sequester,’ which poses a serious threat to our national security and is set to take effect on January 2.  Only Republicans have offered and acted on a plan to stop these threats to our economy and national security.  The House has also acted on long-term solutions to spur economic growth, including beginning the process of reforming our tax code, reducing spending, and taking steps to save Medicare and other critical programs headed toward bankruptcy.

“Far from proposing any kind of responsible plan, President Obama’s Democratic allies in the Senate remain hell-bent on raising taxes on small businesses, even if it means driving over the fiscal cliff, despite warnings from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office that this would tank our economy.  With so much at stake, Democrats should choose leadership over brinkmanship and work with Republicans to stop the president’s small business tax hike and replace his ‘sequester’ with responsible spending cuts and reforms.  Otherwise, President Obama’s failure to lead spells more uncertainty at a time when Americans can least afford it.”