WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Wednesday it was "surprised and disappointed" by attacks on its policies from some corners of the business world, as it pushed back hard against criticism from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
"The stakes are far too high for us to be working against one another," White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and Valerie Jarrett, President Barack Obama's top adviser, said in a letter to the chamber, a top lobby group for U.S. businesses.
"That is why we were surprised and disappointed at the rhetoric we have heard from some in the business community -- rhetoric that fails to acknowledge the important steps this administration has taken," they said in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.
The chamber, which is hosting a jobs summit on Wednesday, has accused Obama and his Democrats in Congress of neglecting job creation and hampering growth with burdensome regulatory and tax policies.
Recalling the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the White House said it would not "stand by" while the energy industry fought tighter regulations to improve environmental safety, and stressed its duties went far wider than the business lobby.
"We know the Chamber of Commerce may have a different approach to some of these issues, but we also have different responsibilities," they said. "Your responsibility is to your constituent organizations, and ours is to the health and safety of the American people and the national interest."
(Reporting by Steve Holland; writing by Alister Bull; editing by Mohammad Zargham)
