Republicans didn’t oppose extending unemployment benefits for out-of-work Americans. They opposed extending the benefits without first finding a way to pay for them without adding to the national deficit and debt.

Democrats didn’t want to find a way to actually pay for the extension, so they demonized Republicans and eventually rammed the legislation through unfunded.

CBS News’ Mark Knoller:

“Suddenly, Republican leaders want to change that,” [Obama] said.

He portrayed Republicans as hypocrites for demanding that jobless benefits be paid for but not applying the same standard to their call for an extension of Bush Administration tax cuts that will expire this year.

“So after years of championing policies that turned a record surplus into a massive deficit, including a tax cut for the wealthiest Americans, they’ve finally decided to make their stand on the backs of the unemployed,” the president said last Saturday in his radio/internet address.

But Republicans were quick to remind Mr. Obama what he said after signing a previous extension of unemployment benefits on November 6th of last year.

“Now, it’s important to note that the bill I signed will not add to our deficit. It is fully paid for, and so it is fiscally responsible,” he said.

So eight months ago, he said paying for the benefits was the right thing to do, but now he sees no need to do so.

Knoller asked Press Secretary Robert Gibbs about Obama’s hypocrisy, and Gibbs promised to review the quote and get back to Knoller. To the surprise of absolutely no one, Gibbs never got back to the CBS reporter.

Welcome to the era of change. As in, Obama changes his stated positions every few months.