Hoyer: Republican Lawsuit 'A Waste of Time,' 'A Loser' That Will 'Go Nowhere'

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With Congress expected to vote on authorization to sue President Obama over executive overreach, House Democrats slammed the effort Wednesday as a “loser” and “waste of time.”

“Republicans are wasting time on a partisan lawsuit when instead we ought to be taking action to support job creation and expand opportunities for the middle class,” House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer said at a press conference Wednesday promoting the Democratic “Made in America” agenda. 

House Republicans are expected to bring the authorization to initiate a lawsuit against President Obama for exceeding his powers, specifically with regard to Obamacare, to the House floor Wednesday. 

Democrats — who have been fundraising off not only the lawsuit but also the threat of impeachment — argued Wednesday that Republicans are distracting Congress from pursuing solutions to help the middle class with “partisan efforts that divide us.”

“I think it is a waste of time, I think it’s a loser, it is unprecedented and it is to gin up the Republican base,” Hoyer said.

He added that talk of impeachment is a “distraction” but said House Speaker John Boehner needs to make a “definitive statement that is not their agenda, that’s not what they’re going to do, they’re not going to pursue it.”

Tuesday, Boehner called discussions of impeachment a Democratic “scam.” 

“We have no plans to impeach the president. We have no future plans,” he said. 

Hoyer was not alone in slamming the lawsuit at the Wednesday press conference. New Jersey Democratic Rep. Bill Pascrell charged that Republicans “need help” because they are “always negative.”

Republicans are “happy with mediocre approach to governing, at best” charged New York Democratic Rep. Joseph Crowley. 

Hoyer further argued that the lawsuit will “go nowhere” and take up time that he said should be used on other priorities like the Export-Import Bank, education, jobs, and the economy. 

At his Tuesday press conference Boehner highlighted the number of jobs bills that have passed the House in recent months, and put the blame on Senate inaction.

“Over 40 jobs bills sitting on the desk of the Senate Majority Leader,” he said. “And Senate Democrats refuse to stay focused on what the American people want to stay focused on, and that’s more jobs and better pay.”