Asked whether he stands by yesterday’s criticism, King said, “I stand by what I said at the time,” adding that he felt “shock therapy” was necessary. “Did you mean it though?” Matt Lauer asked.

“At the time, I did,” King replied. But having said that, King noted that he did meet with House Speaker John Boehner, who agreed to put everything they wanted on the calendar. Boehner is a “friend,” he added.

Lauer pressed King, reminding him that he deemed Boehner’s attitude toward the people of New York and New Jersey to be “dismissive” and “cavalier.”

“What’s done is done,” King said. “The fact is, when the money was on the line, the decision had to be made. John Boehner made the right decision. John Boehner agreed to put it all on the calendar.” Though he wished it would’ve been done earlier, the congressman argued, “If we’re going to carry grudges the rest of our lives, we’ll never get anything done.”