White House rebuffs Boehner on Benghazi-related emails

White House Press Secretary Jay Carney during his daily news briefing at the White House on Friday, May, 10, 2013. …President Barack Obama's standoff with congressional Republicans over Benghazi escalated Friday as the White House rebuffed House Speaker John Boehner's demand that it turn over unclassified internal emails linked to the deadly Sept. 11, 2012 attack.

Press secretary Jay Carney rejected the request and again accused Republicans of trying to milk the tragedy for political gain.

“They’re asking for emails that they’ve already seen, that they were able to review and take extensive notes on, apparently provide verbatim information to folks,” Carney told reporters.

His comments came hours after ABC News reported that talking points crafted by the Administration to explain the attack to the public underwent extensive revisions at the State Department's request and with copious White House oversight.

"The fact that the very people who’ve reviewed this and probably leaked it – generally speaking, not specifically -- are asking for something they’ve already had access to I think demonstrates that this is what it was from the beginning in terms of Republican handling of it which is a highly political matter," the spokesman said.

Carney noted that key Republicans had been given access to internal emails in which officials discussed the drafting of the talking points. Lawmakers were able "to review them, take notes, spend as much with with them as they liked," Carney said.(But lawmakers were were not allowed to make copies or take the documents out, which is known as an "in camera" review. )

"There is a long precedent here for protecting internal deliberations. This is across administrations of both parties," he said. House Republicans have hinted they may try to subpoena the emails if the Administration does not cooperate.

"From the hours after the attack, beginning with the Republican nominee’s unfortunate press release, and then his statements the day after, there has been an effort to politicize a tragedy here, the deaths of four Americans," Carney said, referring to Mitt Romney's poorly received response to the attack.

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Boehner Uncommitted to Gun Votes in House

After the U.S. Senate voted down a slate of proposals to toughen the country's gun laws Wednesday, House Speaker John Boehner today was non-committal on the prospect of considering similar measures in the House of Representatives. Still, the speaker maintained that the Republican-controlled committees of jurisdiction in the House will continue examining mental health and gun violence.

RELATED: Newtown Families: Gun Push Isn't Over

"Our committees continue to work at this," Boehner, R-Ohio, said. "No decision has been made beyond that."

When he was asked whether he will expedite consideration of a bill or follow regular order, in which a bill starts at the committee level, and, separately, whether he believes there should be a political price to pay for lawmakers who oppose stronger gun legislation, the speaker's tone carried a lack of urgency.

RELATED: 'Round One' Or A Knockout To Obama's Gun Agenda?

"Our committees are going to continue to look at the violence in our society and look at these tragedies and determine whether there are common-sense steps that we can take to reduce the chances of this," Boehner said. "The relevant committees are working on this issue. I'm going to continue to work with them, and when we have a decision to announce, we'll announce it."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said Democrats are "so disappointed" by the Senate's failed efforts, but she said she will continue fighting for stronger gun measures.

"Something must be done, because that's what the American people expect and what they deserve," Pelosi, D-Calif., said. "What we want also is a vote. The American people can say to the leadership in the Congress, to the speaker of the House, give us a vote. Give us a vote in the House."

RELATED: Mark Kelly on Gun Vote: 'Gabby Is Angry Today'

Boehner has long maintained that he would wait until the Senate actually passes legislation - not simply takes votes on gun measures - before he considers any gun-related legislation on the House floor.

Today, despite the actuality of the Senate's failed votes, Pelosi urged Boehner to take up legislation without delay.

"If he was waiting for the Senate to act and now he feels he's - doesn't have any work to do, well, then that just says we're not the legislative branch," Pelosi said. "We're the first branch of government, the legislative branch. It is our responsibility to legislate, and we have our responsibility in the House to do that."

Rep. Mike Thompson, the chairman of the Democratic Task Force to Prevent Gun Violence, said that the failed vote in the Senate was "unexplainable," but is "not going to slow us or deter our work in regard to gun violence prevention."

"Every time I get in the car, the Garmin says, 'recalculating, recalculating,'" Thompson, D-Calif., joked. "We'll recalculate and get our bearing, and we're going to go forward on this. The American people want their Congress to take action to make their communities, their neighborhoods, their workplace and their schools safer, and we can do that while protecting the Second Amendment."

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Boehner, Pelosi Hint at Next Showdowns in Congress

Boehner, Pelosi Hint at Next Showdowns in Congress

After a "rough" week across the country, House Speaker John Boehner and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi both addressed tragedy and strategy in their weekly news conferences today, offering their condolences to those affected by the Boston Marathon bombings and the West, Texas, explosion.

"Words alone cannot console the loved ones, but we will do what we can to care for them," Pelosi, D-Calif., said. "With the investigation ongoing, we will make sure that justice is done."

"Our hearts go out to the victims and the people of Boston," Boehner, R-Ohio, added. "[I'm] glad the president's up there today, and I add my prayers to his."

As the investigations in Boston and Texas proceed, inside the beltway Congress continues battling over a series of legislative showdowns.

Pelosi and her leadership team fired off a letter today to the speaker demanding that he appoint conferees to settle differences over the House and Senate-passed budgets.

"Right now the focus is on adopting a budget that reflects our country's values, creates jobs and strengthens the middle class," she said. "The Senate has passed its budget bill…and we're overdue; April 15 was the deadline for us having a budget for a conference report."

When asked whether he intends to comply with Pelosi's request, Boehner encouraged bipartisan informal conversations to continue between House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan and Senate Budget Chairwoman Patty Murray. The speaker predicted that the Democrats' approach would only lead to further political warfare because under House rules, if conferees fail to reach an agreement within 20 legislative days, the minority is able to make procedural motions to score political points.

"The minority has the right to offer motions to instruct, which become politically motivated bombs that…show up on the House floor," Boehner said. "We're following what I would describe as regular order. These informal conversations are underway, and that's the way it should work."

Both Pelosi and Boehner also addressed ongoing immigration reform, and congratulated the Gang of Eight on creating a bipartisan compromise.

"I want to congratulate the Senate Gang of Eight for coming forward with their bill," Boehner said. "I'm sure there's parts of it I would agree with, parts that I would disagree with, but the fact is that they've worked together in a bipartisan fashion to craft this bill."

Pelosi echoed the speaker's sentiments, and admitted that while the bill was commendable, it is not a perfect agreement for either party.

"I feel very confident about how we go forward on the immigration bill. I commend the eight Senators for the work that they did," she said. "Of course, it's a compromise. Would I change things? Of course, but I do think that that's what a compromise is about."

Boehner also noted that reaching compromise legislation among a small group of members does not necessarily prepare every other lawmaker to act on the issue.

"You have to remember, about three-fourths of members of Congress have never dealt with the issue of immigration," he said. "There's a big learning curve that the members are going to have to go through."

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Boehner unswayed by Portman's switch on gay marriage

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner said on Sunday he cannot imagine ever supporting gay marriage even though Senator Rob Portman, his friend and fellow Ohio Republican, very publicly reversed his opposition last week.

Portman became the most prominent Republican lawmaker to back same-sex marriage, doing so two years after his son told him he is gay.

"Rob is a great friend and a long-time ally," Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, told ABC's "This Week."

"I believe that marriage is the union of one man and one woman. It's what I grew up with. It's what I believe. It's what my church teaches me. And I can't imagine that position would ever change," added Boehner, who is a Roman Catholic.

Portman served as U.S. trade representative and White House budget director under Republican President George W. Bush.

President Barack Obama last year announced his support for gay marriage. Nine of the 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. permit it. The Supreme Court is due to hear oral arguments this month in two gay marriage cases.

The Republican Party has become increasingly split on gay marriage, with some arguing that socially conservative positions such as opposition to same-sex marriage are contributing to the party's election losses.

"We conservatives believe in personal liberty and minimal government interference in people's lives," Portman wrote in a newspaper opinion piece on Friday. "... One way to look at it is that gay couples' desire to marry doesn't amount to a threat but rather a tribute to marriage, and a potential source of renewed strength for the institution."

On another contentious issue, Boehner declined to promise that the Republican-controlled House would hold a vote on any gun control measure passed by the Democratic-controlled Senate.

"If they pass something, I would make clear that we will review it," Boehner said, stopping short of promising a vote.

Obama is seeking new measures to curb gun violence after the December massacre of 20 children and six adults by a gunman at a Connecticut elementary school. A Senate committee has approved four gun measures but their prospects in the full Senate are less clear.

(Reporting by Will Dunham; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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