Can Congress stop Obama from making payments to Iran?

Congress wants to rein in the White House's legal settlements slush fund. It's a little late for that.
Committee chairman Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA) speaks during a hearing of the Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill June 2, 2015 in Washington, DC. The committee held the hearing to hear from four family members of Americans held in in Iran. AFP PHOTO/BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI (Photo credit should read BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
The chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 2, 2015. - BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images
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Julian Pecquet
@JPecquet_ALM

To hear Republicans in Congress tell it, President Barack Obama trampled all over precedent and the Constitution with his $1.7 billion cash payout to Iran.

The State Department first announced the payment in January. It has gained renewed attention, however, in the wake of Wall Street Journal reports linking the payout to the release of four Americans detained in Iran.

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