Kirk calls for new controls on federal spending (RINO wants to give Obama line-item veto power)

AP ^ | 2010-09-03 | Chris Wills

[rabscuttle385]

U.S. Senate candidate Mark Kirk called for new measures Thursday to limit federal spending, including giving the president the power to veto specific programs.

The Illinois Republican also said he would back a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget and a “super-majority” vote before Congress could approve excess spending.

[usconservative]

How can you pass a law that applies only to presidents of your party and not the other one?

See: TARP, Economic "Stimulus" #1, GM/Chrysler Bailouts, Economic Stimulus #2 (announced today in Wisconsin.)

[Impy]

That is true.

And yes it is unconstitutional which is why it would take an amendment.

With a Leninist in the White House I’d rather the President have no powers at all but....

[sickoflibs]

RE :”And yes it is unconstitutional which is why it would take an amendment.”

Rather than that gimmick that would give more power to the president I would rather see a balanced budget amendment with no exceptions for ‘emergencies’ and entitlements included.

[AuH2ORepublican]

Yes, a line-item veto is unconstitutional (been there, done that). Pat Moynihan was absolutely right when he warned his fellow Senators that the Constitution provides that after a bill passes Congress the president may veto “it” or sign “it,” not sign part of the bill into law and veto part of it. So for the president to have a line-item veto such as what many state governors have would require a constitutional amendment.

However, there is a growing movement in Congress (which President Obama has recently embraced) to provide the president with “enhanced rescission authority,” which would give the president 45 days after signing an appropriations bill into law to defund (at least temporarily) certain portions of it, and to send his cuts back to Congress as a new bill (which would be unamendable and not subject to filibuster) for a mandatory up-or-down vote within 25 days. http://www.ombwatch.org/node/11038