Statement on House of Representatives Passage of Legislative Line-Item Veto Legislation

I commend Members of the House who voted today in support of the Legislative Line Item Veto Act of 2006. I also applaud the House Republican leadership, Congressman Paul Ryan and Congressman Mark Udall, for successfully steering this bill to passage. Controlling the Federal appetite for spending and protecting taxpayer dollars are shared responsibilities of the legislative and executive branches and require a bipartisan approach. I appreciate those Democrats who have supported the line-item veto in the past and did so again today. The line-item veto is a critical tool that will help rein in wasteful spending and bring greater transparency to the budget process.

Forty-three Governors have a line-item veto, and we need similar authority at the Federal level to control spending. Working with Congress, this tool can be used to help reduce the budget deficit and discourage the practice of earmarking Federal funds for projects that are wasteful, duplicative, or unnecessary. I urge the Senate to also pass the line-item veto legislation, so Congress and my administration can begin using this important tool to help enforce fiscal discipline.