Tea Partyers expressed opposition to the measure Tuesday, as did the White House, which immediately rejected it, saying it was unbalanced and didn't go far enough on seeking more revenue from the wealthy.
"In the last 24 hours, the question that I get from my caucus and from some of you is, 'What is the speaker trying to prove by going to what we call Plan B?'" House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said.
Obama said Wednesday he would continue to work with Boehner and was prepared to do "tough things." But he said he would not compromise on his demand that he be given authority to raise the debt ceiling without Congress' approval.
"What separates us is probably a few hundred billion dollars," Obama said. "The idea that we would put our economy at risk because you can't bridge that gap doesn't make a lot of sense."
"We should be able to get this done," Obama said. "Let's get this done. We don't have a lot of time."