Updated 5:58 p.m. | Speaker John A. Boehner said Republicans will fight “tooth and nail” against President Barack Obama’s plans to act on immigration by himself, and didn’t rule out a government shutdown.  

“We’re going to fight the president tooth and nail if he continues down this path,” the Ohio Republican said at a press conference introducing the new GOP leadership team. “This is the wrong way to govern. This is exactly what the American people said on Election Day they didn’t want. And so, all the options are on the table.”  

Boehner is facing pressure from conservatives to pre-emptively defund any amnesty, but that could lead to a shutdown fight.  

“We’re going to have conversations with our members and when we have a decision, we’ll let you know. … Our goal here is to stop the president from violating his oath of office and violating the Constitution. It’s not to shut down the government.”  

Boehner has sought to avoid government shutdowns and strongly criticized conservative groups for pushing last year’s shutdown fight over Obamacare.  

He has already moved to sue the president over his executive actions related to Obamacare, and that could be his go-to move here as well, kicking the constitutional issues to the courts. The other route — impeachment — is something Boehner is even more likely to oppose.  

Boehner did suggest there would be retribution against the president one way or another.  

“Well you know, every administration needs this and needs that, needs all kinds of things. You know, if he wants to go off on his own, there are things he’s just not going to get.”  

Given how little Obama has gotten out of Congress since Boehner’s had the gavel, it’s not clear how big of a threat that is.  

Boehner’s comments came after Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., appeared to rule out again a government shutdown early Thursday.  

Republicans reaffirmed both leaders’ positions Thursday after last week’s’ triumph at the polls.  

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