Obama to Republicans: 'So sue me'
(CNN) - President Barack Obama dared Republicans to follow through on their threats to bring a lawsuit against his administration over his use of executive action.
"Middle-class families can’t wait for Republicans in Congress to do stuff. So sue me," Obama said Tuesday at an event in Washington.
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"As long as they’re doing nothing, I’m not going to apologize for trying to do something."
Obama’s defiant attitude comes as House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican from Ohio, plans to propose legislation that could bring a lawsuit against him for implementing executive actions that the GOP contends amounts to a breach of his constitutional power by side-stepping the legislative process.
Obama: Boehner's lawsuit is 'a stunt'
Recently, Obama has ramped up his use of executive authority as a way to bypass a deeply divided Congress, avoiding inaction on issues the White House has made hallmarks of the President's second term agenda.
On Monday, Obama said he would start "a new effort to fix as much of our immigration system as I can on my own, without Congress."
Poll: Can Obama get the job done?
At Tuesday's event, Obama continued to harp on congressional Republicans to pass legislation - this time pushing them to invest in transportation.
Standing in front of Key Bridge, which connects the city's Georgetown-area to Virginia, Obama continued his stepped-up rhetoric hammering Republican for obstructing action in Washington.
Obama proposed a long-term highway construction bill earlier this year that he says would spur job growth.
"It’s not crazy, it’s not socialism," Obama said of his transportation proposal. "It’s not the imperial presidency - no laws are broken. We’re just building roads and bridges like we’ve been doing for the last, I don’t know, 50, 100 years. But so far, House Republicans have refused to act on this idea."
CNN's Mike Ahlers and Rene Marsh contributed to this report.
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Johnny B Goode
king obama. imprerial rule. dictator. communist. maxist. elitist. socialists .... all the other ist. Do republican sheeps even realize they don't use their own words and just parrot out repub radio talking points. Its said to see alot of "free minds" brainwashed so easily. If u are republican and cannot even admit that your party has been the most inept congress to date, i weep for you. They had one goal, to destroy obama by any means necessary even at the cost of the america people. The stooped to name calling and questioning birth. They have no limits. They oppose just to oppose. I bet you they are trying to stall progress until when a repub gets into the WH so that they can pass alot of the bills as thier own and take credit for recovery. His first time he tried so hard to compromise. Glad he is giving them the finger now.
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parrot ya I think your right and you do a fine jop of it yourself.
Dont sue the &^%^&. He needs to be impeached!! By far the worse President we have ever had. Jimmy Carter can now rest.
Don't sue him; IMPEACH him..... easier.
Why do they want to sue the president when they actually should try to impeach him if they feel he is doing something illegal! It doesn't make sense to me that congress is allowing such actions by President Obama if they believe he is wrong. The only reasons why I see congress not wanting to impeach is: 1) They are afraid, or 2.) They don't have any reasons under Section II article IV of the Constitution to impeach. I kept my opinion out of it because I believe my opinion would be moot at this point. I just think trying to sue the president is cowardly. Either attempt to Impeach or continue to be under his leadership.
He is not doing his job, if you think he is, then the founding fathers were not doing theirs, there are 3 branches of government to establish a system of checks and balances. When he bypasses this system regardless of his reason his is defying the intent of the foundations of our government. Period. as he likes to say.
wildcard59 says:
July 2, 2014 12:11 pm at 12:11 pm
So, sue the mongrel, and take everything he’s got, including his pants! Leave him penniless and destitute!! I’d really love it, it would be the best thing that’s happened to this country for about 6 years now!!!
Oh smith..... Where for art thou smith??? You see the word "mongrel" don't you???
I HATE this President.
Yup...racism alive and well in today's GOP. Now if Democrats will just vote this mid-term.
Desperate men say desperate things. Hard to believe that this man is President of the Greatest country.
There are actually a few Jim(Barrack Obama)Jones cult member's who have not died yet from drinking the kool aid. They are like cockroaches, hard to kill.
Americans have rarely been highly negaitive about Congress -that is until House Speaker John Boehner took leadership role.
The act that needs to be done now is to initiate the paperwork, as he has requested.
Obama's three branches of government= I, myself and me! Can you spell narcissist?
And the few remaining Obamabots are watching the majority of Americans polled and calling Obama the worst president in the past 70 years.
The Republicans have ZERO political ammo to use on POTUS, so once again, just as they did when Bill Clinton was POTUS, it comes down to personal, nothing to do with politics, issues. If the Republicans actually sent a few bills to the President's desk to be signed, even those that he would have to veto, they could say they were doing something, but the President was blocking them. However, they are doing NOTHING.
Obama is the worst president in history. Bush is a close second
such an arrogant president. I think the job has gotten to his head.
The GOP strategy is to do nothing and blame Obama. The GOP supporters are completely fooled and their strategy worked. Sad we have such fools in the USA.
If all went perfectly in the last 6 years, the Dems would of course want to tout Obama as a hero knowing that the GOP could hardly attack him. But when that doesn't happen, what's in the trusty playbook, you betcha, distance oneself from the outgoing pres. Sure helps even to make him look like he was a go it "alone" person and the new Hillary will be far more inclusive. Yup, seems like CNN knows this too. The script is Obama is a go it alone guy and it's a script that's getting plenty of screen time.
Obama should threaten to hold pay for Congress until they do something worth mentioning.
Can we sue House Republicans for OBSTRUCTING economic growth, FAILING to pass Jobs bill, FAILING to vote on immigration bill …
House Republicans in Congress should figure out how to cooperate and get things done rather than complaining.
Waste of time suing the POTUS, Boehner is just grandstanding. In November the whole congress both democrat and republican should be replaced.
Transportation, immigration, foreign embassy funding, penalizing companies who export american jobs, infrastructure/bridges highways, farm bill..........surely there is something you can pass congress.....the president has NOTHING TO DO WITH you passing legislation....he only signs it or vetoes it, and so far he hasn't vetoed anything you have passed, so man up and pass something for the good of our country.