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| Version 6 | Version 7 |
|---|---|
| House Republicans vote to sue President Obama | House Republicans vote to sue President Obama |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution to sue President Barack Obama for allegedly exceeding his constitutional powers. | 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. | 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. | 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. | 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. | "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." | "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. | 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. | 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. |
| "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. | 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. |
| What are executive orders? | What are executive orders? |
| The president regularly issues orders to manage the executive branch of the federal government, weighing in on everything from White House office decorations to foreign policy. | The president regularly issues orders to manage the executive branch of the federal government, weighing in on everything from White House office decorations to foreign policy. |
| Sometimes "the president decides to put those directions on paper, and that becomes an official document," explains Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the libertarian think-tank Cato Institute. | Sometimes "the president decides to put those directions on paper, and that becomes an official document," explains Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the libertarian think-tank Cato Institute. |
| Read a full explainer | Read a full explainer |
| As far back as January, White House aides began referring to the president's "pen and phone" strategy - using his telephone to convene meetings at the White House and his pen to sign executive orders and changes to federal regulations. | As far back as January, White House aides began referring to the president's "pen and phone" strategy - using his telephone to convene meetings at the White House and his pen to sign executive orders and changes to federal regulations. |
| Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed. | Every US president since George Washington has issued executive orders, and Mr Obama has not stood out in the modern era for the number he has signed. |
| In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara. | In his six years in office Mr Obama has issued 183 executive orders, compared to 291 across George W Bush's eight years and 381 for Ronald Reagan, according to a study by the American Presidency Project at the University of California-Santa Barbara. |
| But Republicans insist Mr Obama has selectively enforced laws duly passed by Congress, upsetting the balance of powers written into the constitution. | But Republicans insist Mr Obama has selectively enforced laws duly passed by Congress, upsetting the balance of powers written into the constitution. |
| "Such a shift in power should alarm members of both political parties because it threatens the very institution of the Congress," the Republicans wrote in report accompanying the House legislation. | "Such a shift in power should alarm members of both political parties because it threatens the very institution of the Congress," the Republicans wrote in report accompanying the House legislation. |