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Boehner pivots to jobs, economy in run-up to November election

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Jobs and the economy remain tops on voters’ minds heading into the midterm election, and House Speaker John A. Boehner wants to re-focus his Republican Party on a “five points” pocketbook agenda before November.

The speaker, known for an unwavering repetition of his trademark slogan -- “Where are the jobs?”-- will expand on that theme in an economic address Thursday as lawmakers prepare to leave town for a month-plus of campaigning.

“Look at the state of things: flat wages, higher prices, a six-year slog to regain the jobs lost during the recession,” Boehner will say at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, according to excerpts of the speech. “We can do this the Washington way: move some dirt around, see what happens. Or we can lay a solid foundation for growth and mobility.”

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Boehner is trying not to repeat the mistake of the 2012 presidential election, when Republicans largely agree they erred by making the race a referendum on President Obama’s policies -- rather than a clear choice between the incumbent and the Republican nominee Mitt Romney.

With Republicans favored to retain the House and within reach of Senate control, the Ohio Republican is portraying the GOP as more than the party of no -- or “Hell, no!” as Boehner has put it, referring to stubborn tea party conservatives.

The agenda includes a conservative menu of tax cuts for corporations and individuals, reductions in government spending, limits on government regulations, more school choice options and reforms to what some see as frivolous lawsuits.

Democrats have already fully engaged on pocketbook issues. Their “Fair Shot” agenda includes proposals to raise the minimum wage, ensure equal pay for women and help college students reduce loan debt. They rebut much of Boehner’s approach, reminding voters of the GOP’s austere budgeting from Romney’s vice presidential running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).

“We Democrats spent the year fighting for the middle class, and the Republicans have spent the year fighting against the middle class,” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Thursday.

As campaign slogans go, the “five-point” agenda may not be a barn burner, but neither was the Democrats’ “Six for ‘06” the year that swept to Reid and Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) to power in midterms.

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For many Republicans backing Boehner, it’s a welcome and overdue start.

For the latest from Congress follow @LisaMascaroinDC

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