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Skriven 2006-03-06 23:34:24 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0603067) for Mon, 2006 Mar 6
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Fact Sheet: President Submits Line Item Veto Legislation to Congress
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 6, 2006

Fact Sheet: President Submits Line Item Veto Legislation to Congress


˙˙˙˙˙Message to the Congress of the United States
˙˙˙˙˙Press Briefing on the President's Line-Item Veto Legislation by OMB
Director Josh Bolten

"Today, I'm sending Congress legislation that will meet standards and give
me the authority to strip special spending and earmarks out of a bill, and
then send them back to Congress for an up or down vote. By passing this
version of the line item veto, the administration will work with the
Congress to reduce wasteful spending, reduce the budget deficit, and ensure
that taxpayer dollars are spent wisely," President Bush, March 6, 2006.

Today's Presidential Action:

Today, President Bush sent to Congress line item veto legislation that is
designed to rein in wasteful spending, reduce the budget deficit, and
improve accountability. The proposed legislation is also consistent with
the Constitution.

  ū Legislative Line Item Veto Act: Special, fast-track procedures would be
    created to guarantee an up-or-down vote by simple majority in Congress
    on a proposal by the President to rescind specific spending or tax
    legislation that has been passed. Leaders from both the Republican and
    Democratic parties, in the House and the Senate, have supported this
    approach in the past.

The Legislative Line Item Veto Will Help Reduce Earmarks. Giving the
President enhanced authority to seek rescission of new spending will help
ensure that taxpayer dollars are not wasted on unjustified earmarks that
are not national priorities. Since the Supreme Court struck down the Line
Item Veto Act in 1998, the number of earmarks has significantly increased.

The Line Item Veto Has A Long History of Bipartisan Support. At least 11
presidents from both parties have called for the authority to address
individual spending items wrapped into larger bills: Ulysses Grant,
Rutherford Hayes, Chester Arthur, Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Dwight
Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush,
and Bill Clinton. The governors of 43 of the 50 states already have this
authority.

The President's Proposal Is Fully Consistent with the Constitution. In its
1998 ruling striking down the Line Item Veto Act of 1996, the Supreme Court
concluded that the Act "g[ave] the President the unilateral power to change
the text of duly enacted statutes." The Legislative Line Item Veto Act does
not raise those constitutional issues because the President's rescission
proposals must be enacted by both houses of Congress and signed into law.

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