Aide: Obama, Boehner have 'constructive conversation' on 10 issues

WASHINGTON, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- President Obama and House Speaker John Boehner discussed immigration and other thorny issues Tuesday in a White House meeting, aides said.

An aide to Boehner, R-Ohio, said the two leaders covered a lot of topics in the meeting, describing it as a "constructive conversation," the Hill reported.

The aide said Obama and Boehner discussed 10 issues, including trade, the healthcare law, immigration, Afghanistan and the appropriations process, during the meeting that lasted about 60 minutes.

"They agreed that there is a lot work to do the rest of the year, and it is important to work together wherever we can find common ground," the Boehner representative said.

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the two "had a good and constructive meeting of about an hour, where they discussed a range of issues."

Carney downplayed the meeting's significance when asked whether it signaled an easing of tensions between the White House and Congress. He said it would be a "misconception" to say a bill's outcome depends upon the personal relationship between Boehner and Obama.

The meeting came about a week before Obama is to unveil his budget proposal for fiscal year 2015.