The Senate has finally been given a good chance to act on a presidential line-item veto with teeth.
The Senate's Governmental Affairs Committee has passed a bill proposed by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to arm the chief executive against lawmakers' penchant for loading appropriation bills with amendments that fund pet projects. It now goes to the Senate floor for debate.McCain's bill would require a two-thirds majority for Congress to reinstate projects vetoed by the president. Other line-item-veto bills would allow Congress to override a veto with approval of only a simple majority of both houses.
The two-thirds provision is vital to any line-item-veto proposal. Without it a veto would have little power to stop the continual overspending of Congress members. With it, the president could delete objectionable portions of appropriations bills and make the deletions stick without killing the entire measure.
The House passed a similar bill in February by a substantial vote margin, but Senate Republicans seem bent on weaseling out of their pre-election pledge to support the line-item veto.
The line-item veto has been supported by the public for many years. Forty-three states, including Utah, have such a provision for governors.
It's time the Senate backed up its vocal support with some action. If it doesn't, members should be embarrassed by their lack of response to a consistent voter demand for government based less on special-interest concerns.