U.S. President Barack Obama says Republicans should stop blocking a bill that would limit the amount of money corporations and unions can spend on campaign advertising.
In his weekly address, Mr. Obama called the stalling "politics at its worst." He said in the past Democrats and Republicans have agreed on limiting money that corporations and unions can spend to influence elections.
He said his administration has tried to close loopholes opened by the Supreme Court's ruling that allows special interests and foreign companies to spend heavily on ads in presidential and congressional elections.
But he said Republican leaders in Congress have so far said "no" to legislation that would limit funding and require greater disclosure of who is funding the ads.
Republicans devoted their weekly address to promoting a GOP plan to freeze government spending and stop tax increases that are scheduled to take effect next year unless Congress intervenes. Congressman Greg Walden of the western state of Oregon said that if Democrats are truly focused on creating jobs, they should take action immediately to cut government spending and stop impending tax increases.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.