Speaker John Boehner on Thursday argued the GOP has been working on the issue of jobs since taking power in January even as he unveiled the party’s first legislative package specifically targeted at job growth.

“A number of economists tell us if we can cut spending it will lead to a better environment for job creation in America,” the Ohio Republican said during a press conference.

Boehner’s comments came on the heels of House Republicans rolling out a proposal that includes comprehensive tax reform, patent reform, trade agreements and overhauling the Food and Drug Administration approval process.

The Ohio Republican said he was “hell-bent” on making sure all of the opportunities available to Americans continue in the future.

This is just the latest messaging effort on jobs by House Republicans. They’ve made several attempts over the past five months to cast their agenda, which has been largely focused on cutting federal spending, as a series of pro-jobs bills — including Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s (Va.) “cut and grow” messaging strategy. So far, they’ve struggled to gain traction.

Boehner defended the decision to include several of the bills that have previously been proposed in the new effort.

“Just because it was proposed in the past does not mean it is not a good idea,” Boehner said. “We’re trying to package this in a way where the American people understand what it’s going to take in terms of changing policies here that will create jobs, and I think the package that we have represents a lot of traditional ideas and new ideas.”