Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, said Thursday that Congress’s vote to override President Obama’s veto of a controversial bill shows that Obama’s power is on the decline in his last few months in office.
King was asked on C-SPAN whether Congress would have been able to override Obama’s veto a year earlier, and King said it might not have happened then.
“I’m gonna guess that if it had come up a year ago, probably not,” he said. “I think a factor in this … is that when you have a lame-duck president, his political power is on the decline.”
“I think this is a strong indication of the decline of any president in his last term, in the last months of his presidency,” King added. “His political power is declining, and it’ll decline on out until January 20th.”
King also said the timing of the vote, a little more than a month before the November elections, was also a factor in the decision of lawmakers to override Obama’s veto.
The legislation would give families of the victims of 9/11 the authority to sue foreign governments for their role in helping the 9/11 hijackers. Many believe Saudi Arabia played a role in aiding the hijackers.
King, who almost always opposes Obama, said he agreed with Obama that the bill is a bad idea because it might lead other countries to retaliate, and allow lawsuits against U.S. citizens or even members of the U.S. military operating overseas.
“I’m concerned that we would lay the foundation so that people who are victims and have been victimized that sue a foreign sovereign country, and then we attempt to attach their assets here in the United States,” he said.
“What happens when the shoe is on the other foot, and they turn around and some third-world country decides to sue the United States of America, and then try to claim or attach assets wherever they might be?” he asked.
The Senate voted 97-1 to override Obama’s veto of the bill, and that was followed by a 348-77 vote in the House.
