Obama praises McConnell’s switch on earmarks

Who says President Obama and the Republicans can't get along?

As The Ticket reported earlier today, Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell reversed course and announced he will support a ban on earmarks. In response, President Obama issued a statement saying that he welcomed McConnell's decision on "wasteful earmark spending." But, Obama added, "we can't stop with earmarks as they only represent part of the problem."

You can read the full Obama statement after the jump:

"I welcome Senator McConnell's decision to join me and members of both parties who support cracking down on wasteful earmark spending, which we can't afford during these tough economic times. As a Senator, I helped eliminate anonymous earmarks, and as President, I've called for new limitations on earmarks and set new, higher standards of transparency and accountability. But we can't stop with earmarks as they represent only part of the problem. In the days and weeks to come, I look forward to working with Democrats and Republicans to not only end earmark spending, but to find other ways to bring down our deficits for our children."

(Photo of Obama and McConnell: Charles Dharapak/AP)