The veto threat came in an official statement of administration policy.
The House passed the bill, 243 to 186, in July 2003, even though the White House, in an official statement of administration policy, had said it "strongly opposes" the bill.
But in an official statement of administration policy, the White House today said, "The president will veto the bill unless significant changes are made to address his major concerns".
In an official statement of administration policy, the White House said the president "strongly opposes House passage" of the bill championed by House Speaker John A. Boehner as the way to end the debt stalemate.
On Tuesday, the White House released an official statement of administration policy urging House passage of the Republican bill, a rarity from a White House budget office that more often threatens to veto legislation pending before the House.
The White House, with its own needs to chalk up job-growth programs before the election, issued a "statement of administration policy" this month supporting the House bill and noting that President Obama "called for cutting the red tape that prevents many rapidly growing start-up companies from raising needed capital," while also providing for "appropriate investor protections".
The four-year policy statement is a more important statement of administration goals.
"The bill's requirements could result in significant site cleanup delays, endangering public health and the environment," President Obama's advisers wrote in a statement of administration policy.
Cornyn said on Tuesday he planned to vote against cloture, referencing a White House "statement of administration policy" from June 7 in support of the bill that also says the bill authorizes more spending than the president requested.
