House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, wants to roll back 2011 federal spending to 2008 levels, accompanied by a two-year freeze on existing tax rates.

In a Wednesday appearance on ABC's "Good Morning America," Boehner said the spending reductions would save "about 100 billion this year alone." Exceptions should be made for programs affecting seniors, veterans and national security, his office added in a later news release that furnished no details on what programs would be cut.

Boehner's plan, likely to get short shrift from House Democratic leaders, was quickly endorsed by Rep. Jerry Lewis of California, the top Republican on the House Appropriations Committee. "We must rein in spending now to get back on a sustainable and prosperous financial path," Lewis said in a news release.

Republicans and President Obama are jousting over the best tonic to revive the ailing economy. Seven months after the White House proposed a $3.8 trillion budget for fiscal 2011, which starts in October, lawmakers have made little headway in approving the package of spending bills needed to follow through. Budget analysts don't forecast much progress before the November midterm elections, meaning that lawmakers will have to return later in the year for a lame-duck session.