Cantor "aghast" at some of Obama's speech

House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) was on the offensive immediately after President Barack Obama's speech Wednesday night, labeling the president's remarks as "hyperbole" and blaming the Democrats for a stalled health care reform bill.

"We all know the status quo is unacceptable, and the president said the status quo is unacceptable," Cantor told Fox News. "But when he goes and starts pointing fingers and casting blame, I think it's just a smokescreen. Listen, it's not special interests or Republicans that stand in his way. The Democrats are firmly in control of both bodies in Congress, he's the president; they've just been unable to lead in terms of the type of reform that the American people want to see."

Cantor took particular issue with the end of Obama's speech, when the president railed on lawmakers for capitalizing on the health care reform process.

"Instead of honest debate, we've seen scare tactics," Obama said on Wednesday. "Some have dug into unyielding ideological camps that offer no hope of compromise.  Too many have used this as an opportunity to score short-term political points, even if it robs the country of our opportunity to solve a long-term challenge.  And out of this blizzard of charges and counter-charges, confusion has reigned."

Cantor, however, was not pleased with Obama's assessment of the situation.

"I really sat there aghast with those kind of claims and the hyperbole that was used," Cantor said. "We need some adult sense of responsibility here."