According to White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest, President Obama wears Republican claims that he is lawless as a badge of honor.
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White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest responded to Republican cries that Obama is behaving like a lawless emperor by saying, “We’ve heard this kind of rhetoric about lawlessness from the House Republicans for some time. I think their most recent statement referred to Emperor Obama. You know the fact of the matter is the president is somebody who is willing to examine the law, review the law and use every element of that law to make progress for the American people. If that is something that Republicans are critical of, then that’s, you know, maybe a criticism that the president wears with a badge of honor.”
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The White House is taking the fight to congressional Republicans in a way that they never expected after their midterm election victory. One of the strategies that Republicans are kicking around as a potential way to stop the president’s immigration executive orders is to split the bill to fund the government into two parts. The first would fund the government, and the second would deny funding for the executive orders.
The administration’s position has been consistent. They aren’t going to back down. The government shutdown last year was caused by a Republican refusal to pass a clean funding bill. If Republicans try the same stunt again, Obama will likely veto the government funding bill, and Republicans will be left with a choice to either pass a clean funding bill or shutdown the government.
In other words, the country is zooming towards another government shutdown standoff. The president is being forced to take action on his own because John Boehner refuses to bring the bipartisan Senate passed immigration bill to the floor for a vote. Boehner could defuse the entire situation by allowing a vote.
Boehner and McConnell are swearing that they don’t want a government shutdown, but they are getting themselves into a battle with the president that they won’t win. Obama isn’t intimidated by the incoming Republican majority. In fact, the president seems emboldened by it.
If a president doing his job is “lawless,” Obama should wear the Republican howls of lawlessness as a badge of honor.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
