The White House is firing back at Republican presidential hopeful Rick Perry's comments about Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

White House spokesman Jay Carney says threatening the Fed chairman isn't a good idea. His comments came in response to Perry's assertion that Bernanke would be committing a "treasonous" act if he decided to "print more money to boost the economy." Perry said if Bernanke did that, "we would treat him pretty ugly down in Texas."

Carney says people running for president have to think about what they say. He spoke to reporters traveling with Obama on his three-state Midwest bus tour.

Perry made his comments while campaigning in Iowa