Conservative
Type 40
House bill looks to give president line-item veto
Good. I approve of this, regardless of which party is in the White House.The Republican-led House is trying Wednesday to give President Obama the line-item veto, a constitutionally questionable power over the purse that has been sought by both Republican and Democratic presidents.
The legislation, expected to pass, allows the president to pick out specific items in spending bills for elimination. Currently, the president must sign or veto spending bills in their entirety.
Excellent bi-partisan idea gentlemen. Kudos.The House bill, offered by Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and the top Democrat on the committee, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, stipulates that all savings from eliminated programs would go to deficit reduction. House Republicans have included the bill as part of a package of measures to overhaul the budget process so as to save money.
Sounds fair to me. The President strikes a line item, Congress gives it a straight up or down vote, with no amendments allowed.Supporters say the bill has been written to meet constitutional standards. They say that while the president can propose items for rescission, or elimination, Congress must then vote on the revised spending package and then the president must sign what is in effect a new bill.
I wonder if the Democratic controlled Senate wants to be responsible for keeping the Democratic President from having this authority?But the Senate, traditionally more protective of its constitutional powers, has not always been receptive to the line-item veto idea. In 2007 former Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., picked up 49 votes for a line-item proposal, well short of the 60 needed to break a Democratic-led filibuster.