House Speaker John Boehner has revived the hard-line Republican stance on the debt ceiling. On Tuesday, Boehner said he would again block another increase to the federal debt limit unless it was offset by larger cuts to government spending. A similar move from Boehner and House Republicans last year consumed Washington and nearly brought about a U.S. default on its national debt. As Boehner issued the threat, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney campaigned in Iowa, where he challenged President Obama’s record on the economy.

Mitt Romney: “President Obama is an old-school liberal whose first instinct is to see free enterprise as the villain and government as the hero. America counted on President Obama to rescue the economy, to tame the deficit and help create jobs. Instead, he bailed out the public sector, gave billions of your dollars to companies of his friends, and added almost as much debt to this country as all the prior presidents combined. The consequence is that we are now enduring the most tepid recovery in modern history.”