- Congress will pass some bills I cannot sign,' the president warned
- He has only vetoed two minor bills since his inauguration in 2009
- And 'I'll take some actions that some in Congress will not like,' Obama added, referring to threatened executive orders
- Those include a bold move on immigration 'before the end of the year'
- President sounded more like a winner than a loser despite his policies being repudiated on a national scale
- Never articulated a single policy where he would shift his position to align with GOP majorities in both houses of Congress
President Barack Obama came out swinging on Wednesday just 14 hours after a Republican wave swept over the U.S. Congress in an election that largely repudiated his policies.
'Congress will pass some bills I cannot sign,' he said, threatening to dust off a veto pen that he has used only twice in nearly six years.
And he hinted at executive orders that will enrage conservatives.
'I'm pretty sure I'll take some actions that some in Congress will not like,' he said. 'That's natural. That's how Democracy works.'
Much of reporters' tussling with the president focused on executive orders related to immigration reform – what some tea party Republicans call an 'amnesty' – which he plans to implement this year.
He acknowledged that the GOP won Tuesday's elections, but framed the results as a mandate for Republicans to work with him, instead of the other way around.
'Obviously the Republicans had a good night,' he said.
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STUNG BUT SWINGING: Obama insisted that he won't budge on immigration and other key issues despite Republicans' 'wave' election on Tuesday
FULL HOUSE: Reporters crowded into the White House's East Room to hear President Barack Obama react to his party's Tuesday night electoral drubbing
NEW COLD WARRIOR? Kentucky Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell (left) seized control of Democrats' previous congressional stronghold on Tuesday, but Obama behaved as though his party won
