Critic: Obama plan 'impeachable'

• Charles Krauthammer called Obama's plans for immigration order 'impeachable'


• The conservative columnist made his remarks on Fox News on Thursday


• Conservative activists and politicians have brought up impeachment over immigration before

Washington (CNN) -- Conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer called President Barack Obama's planned executive action on immigration "impeachable."

"I believe it is an impeachable offense," Krauthammer said Wednesday night on Fox News, when asked about Obama's reported proposals to use executive orders to make changes to the immigration system.

Krauthammer added that Obama's plans to shield certain undocumented immigrants from deportation via executive order would be a "flagrant assault on the Constitution."

Krauthammer's remarks could revive talk of impeachment in conservative circles, months after former Gov. Sarah Palin sparked a firestorm this summer when she called for Obama's impeachment after he first announced his plans to use his executive order power to act on immigration reform.

"It's time to impeach," Palin wrote in a Breitbart op-ed in July. "The many impeachable offenses of Barack Obama can no longer be ignored. If after all this he's not impeachable, then no one is."

Democrats jumped on those comments this summer to force GOP leaders to address the possibility of impeachment and, ultimately, reject that possibility. The House of Representatives instead voted this summer to approve plans for a lawsuit against Obama for overreaching on changes to the Affordable Care Act.

Could immigration cause another government shutdown?

Even Krauthammer conceded this summer that impeachment would be "political suicide" for Republicans.

For many tea party conservatives, Obama's executive action plans on immigration reform were the last straw in a long line of grievances of what they claim to be executive overreach since Obama has been in office.

Others who have called for Obama's impeachment or said it should be strongly considered include conservative firebrand Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and tea party favorite Rep. Steve King of Iowa among others.