“A constitutional line-item veto, or expedited rescission authority, would…restore the balance that has been eroded by Congress’s budget rules that favor spending and pork, and would hold both the legislative and executive branches more accountable for the expenditure of tax dollars.  While some have questioned whether expedited rescissions at the federal level would threaten the separation of powers, experience with such authority at the state level indicates that would not be the outcome.           

“Mr. Chairman, expedited rescissions would allow the president to weigh parochial expenditures which benefit the few against the common good and the priorities of the many.  The American people know the way business is done in Washington, and they are seeking changes. 

“Successive presidents have asked Congress to provide them with the line-item veto.  Congress must show that it is serious about controlling spending by passing legislation giving the president expedited rescission authority.” 

CCAGW is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation’s largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.

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