The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution to sue President Barack Obama for allegedly exceeding his constitutional powers.
The 225-201 vote along
party lines means House lawyers will now draft legal documents to launch a
lawsuit.Its supporters say Mr
Obama exceeded his powers when he delayed an insurance deadline in his
healthcare law.
The president himself
has dismissed it as a waste of time. "Everyone sees this as a political
stunt," he said."If they're not
going to do anything, we'll do what we can on our own," the president
added.And we've taken more than 40 actions aimed at helping hardworking
families like yours. That's when we act - when your Congress won't."The action is reportedly
the first time either the House or Senate has brought legal action against a
president over the legality of his powers, although members of Congress have
sued the president before.
Republicans in Congress
have complained that Mr Obama has exceeded his constitutional authority on
numerous occasions, in order to bypass Congress by issuing executive orders. They object, for
instance, to his order unilaterally easing deportations of some young illegal
immigrants, and the prison exchange that won the release of a US soldier held
captive for five years by the Taliban.Congressman Pete
Sessions of Texas sponsored the resolution
"This isn't about
Republicans or Democrats. It's about defending the Constitution we swore an
oath to," Speaker John Boehner said during an impassioned debate in the
House on Wednesday evening.
"Are you willing to
let any president choose what laws to execute and what laws to change?" At issue was Mr Obama's
decision to twice delay requirements in his 2010 healthcare overhaul that
businesses over a certain size provide their workers with health insurance. Mr Obama has been
forthright about his intentions to circumvent the gridlocked Congress when
possible, noting frequently that the Republican-controlled House of
Representatives has declined even to hold votes on Senate-passed bills on
topics from immigration reform to gay rights.BBC
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