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A threat or a promise?
By Seymour Klierly Veto, veto, veto! President Bush apparently has a new favorite word, and he's hoping Congress takes notice. Lawmakers traditionally spend the months of July and September working on the annual spending bills which allocate money to federal departments. While it's common for presidents to issue statements criticizing Congress for spending more than the administration's request, this year, President Bush has taken things a step further. The President is threatening to veto any of the 12 appropriations bills if they spend more than he requested. President Bush hopes this veto "threat" is enough to scare Congress into spending more wisely. However, his strategy may be working against him. What he doesn't seem to understand is that, just like Chicken Little, lawmakers may be turning a deaf ear to these constant threats. After all, President Bush has only used the power of veto on stem cell legislation in his seven years in office. The latest round of threats seems to be the most amusing. While not a formal veto threat yet, the White House is saying President Bush may veto the House ag committee's farm bill, should it pass. So ridiculous is this latest threat that even top ag committee Republican Bob Goodlatte has come out supporting the bill and encouraging others to vote for it. USDA Secretary Mike Johanns and Deputy Secretary Chuck Conner are toting the President's bucket on this one. Both have made strong statements against the House payment limits. Under the ag committee's bill, producers with a three year Adjusted Gross Income average over $1 million would be prohibited from receiving commodity and conservation payments. Under USDA's proposal, payments would be cut off from those making over $200,000. The House plan saves $522 million while USDA's plan saves about $1.5 billion. However, when USDA released their proposal in February, it was met with much hostility. House Ag Chairman Peterson saw the $1 million level as more politically viable. After all, the goal of writing a farm bill is to write one that can actually pass. In 2002, USDA and the President were criticized for not playing a larger role in farm bill debate. Now, with a new secretary and deputy, the department's involvement has certainly increased. The effectiveness of this new strategy won't be seen until a bill actually passes. So why the sudden uptick in presidential veto threats? Well, we're coming into the final stage of President Bush's term. The power of veto is about the only chit a lame-duck president has left to play. For the next 17 months, lawmakers must decide whether they believe the President will just threaten to veto, or actually pull the trigger.
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