House votes to give Obama limited line-item veto [The House voted 254-173, with 57 De

ScienceRocks

Democrat all the way!
Mar 16, 2010
59,455
6,792
1,900
The Good insane United states of America
House votes to give Obama limited line-item veto [The House voted 254-173, with 57 Democrats]
Reuters ^
House votes to give Obama limited line-item veto | Reuters

House votes to give Obama limited line-item veto 7:21pm EST

By David Lawder

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The House of Representatives voted to give President Barack Obama a limited line-item veto authority on Wednesday in a rare display of bipartisanship on bitterly divisive spending and budget issues.

The House voted 254-173, with 57 Democrats joining Republicans in favoring the bill, which allows the president to propose elimination of individual items in spending legislation and subject them to a separate, second vote by Congress.

Sponsored by the top Republican and Democrat on the House Budget Committee, the line-item veto bill had strong support from the White House. Many presidents have sought line-item vetoes over the years as a tool to chip away at wasteful spending.

Currently, the president must sign or veto spending bills in their entirety.

A Republican-controlled Congress in 1996 gave Democratic President Bill Clinton a full line-item veto authority that required a two-thirds majority to override and reinsert spending measures.

But the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional in 1998, saying it took spending powers away from Congress.

The bill passed on Wednesday tries to get around the constitutional problem by subjecting vetoed items to a second vote in Congress.


(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
 

New Topics

Forum List

Back
Top