Both file photos courtesy Getty Images
(CNN, June 24, 2014) – House Speaker John Boehner is weighing whether to sue President Barack Obama over his use of executive action.
A spokesman for Boehner, R-Ohio, confirmed that the speaker is considering bringing a lawsuit against the President for a misuse of executive authority, which the White House has relied on to push through initiatives without Congress’ approval.
Republicans argue Obama is breaching his constitutional power by side-stepping the legislative process.
“The President has a clear record of ignoring the American people’s elected representatives and exceeding his Constitutional authority, which has dangerous implications for both our system of government and our economy,” Boehner spokesman Michael Steel said.
So far, the Republican-controlled House has passed two bills aimed at curbing executive orders by the President, neither of which have gone anywhere in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Obama has used executive actions 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.
Steel did not give an indication of how soon Boehner would decide whether to bring the lawsuit against the President, or which actions he would challenge.
Obama has used his executive authority to push through a number of issues. Most recently, he directed the Department of Labor to extend family leave to same-sex couples. Previously, he raised the minimum wage for federal contractors and halt deportations for many children in the United States illegally.
Rank and file House Republicans have been pushing for months for top GOP leaders to file a lawsuit.
Conservative Republicans have long complained that the President has overstepped his authority – citing the series of changes that the Obama has made on his own to tweak the implementation of Obamacare.
Congressional Republicans, fueled by anger from their grassroots supporters, also argued it was time to explore legal action when the President began saying in January that he had a “pen and a phone” and would take action on key priorities if Congress failed to move legislation.
If Boehner does decide to bring a lawsuit against the President, one avenue he could take is to convene a Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group made up of House Republicans – something he did in 2011 when the White House said it would no longer defend the anti same-sex marriage law, the Defense of Marriage Act.
Boehner just so happened to be with the President on Tuesday, along with Vice President Joe Biden, at the White House to meet with members of the 2013 U.S. and International Presidents Cup teams. And the mood didn’t seem to be too tense between the House leader and the commander-in-chief, given reports of Boehner’s possible lawsuit.
Obama joked: “I’m joined by two of my favorite golf partners, the Vice President of the United States Joe Biden and Speaker of the House John Boehner.”
Commissioner Tim Finchem jokingly said that he’s been keeping track of who criticizes the President about his golf game, and Boehner was not among his critics.
“The only thing that he doesn’t criticize me about,” the President added, to laughs.
