From: jsax@igc.apc.org (Joel Sax)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.quaker
Subject: FCNL LEGISLATIVE UPDATE [12/18/92]
Date: 21 Dec 92 17:13:00 GMT
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1744600057:000:4489
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!jsax    Dec 21 09:13:00 1992


From: Joel Sax <jsax>
Subject: FCNL LEGISLATIVE UPDATE [12/18/92]

/* Written  1:21 pm  Dec 18, 1992 by fcnl@igc.apc.org in igc:fcnl.updates */
/* ---------- "FCNL LEGISLATIVE UPDATE [12/18/92]" ---------- */
      
          FCNL LEGISLATIVE UPDATE -- [12/18/92]

This is the Friends Committee on National Legislation,
with updated legislative information.  To speak with a
staff member, call (202) 547-6000.

This message was prepared at 4:00 p.m on Friday,
December 18.  Because of the holidays, this message
will not be updated until Wednesday, December 30.  The
present message includes thoughts on Christmas and
information about the line item veto. 

At this time of year, our thoughts turn toward
Bethlehem, where God touched the earth 2000 years ago,
and where people are still fighting each other and
dying at one another's hands.  Our thoughts turn to
Somalia, Mozambique, Bangladesh, Liberia, Haiti, and
some of our own poorest neighborhoods, where simply
staying alive is the greatest gift the season could
bring.  Our thoughts turn to children everywhere,
struggling to become the future.

We embrace our despair and our hope together, wrapped
in our faith that God is here now in this world.  Our
hope takes us forward into a new year with a new
administration that speaks of putting people first. 
Friends, let us breathe deeply of faith and hope this
Christmas...and continue our work together in the new
year. 

LINE ITEM VETO.  The new administration is looking at
many ways to open up government processes to ordinary
citizens.  Overall, their intent is to make the
government make more  sense to most of us.  A number
of initiatives are being considered in this area,
including simplified government forms, citizen
advisory groups, and making bureaucracies more
accountable to the people they serve.  These appear
promising.
 
One initiative in this area, however, could weaken
rather than strengthen democratic processes.  This is
the concept known as the "line item veto."  The idea
is to give the White House the ability to simply
remove certain programs or spending levels that
Congress has already approved in appropriations bills. 
The reason given for the proposal is that the
President could use this authority to cut wasteful
spending on "porkbarrel" projects, while retaining the
legitimate expenditures. 

But it's an idea that's full of false assumptions. 
For one thing, the line item veto -- which most state
governors already have --  would not guarantee lower
overall spending.  The governors manage to substitute
their pet spending projects for the legislature's
choices;  a president is likely to do the same at the
federal level.  Presidents are not necessarily better
at cutting budgets than Congress.

A proposal of this type is under discussion between
congressional leaders and President-elect Clinton's
team, which involves rescissions.  A "rescission" is
the act of rescinding or undoing a previous action.
This proposal would require Congress to act quickly on
a package of rescissions that the President might
propose AFTER signing an appropriations bill.  The
Congress would have to vote on the whole package at
once, with no changes.  The obvious danger is that
some very harmful cuts could be hidden behind the
elimination of some obvious "porkbarrel" projects. 
This tool also gives the President an additional lever
to use over Congress, to assure that his own
priorities receive positive attention.

The Constitution wisely placed the "power of the
purse" with the most broadly representative chamber of
Congress -- the House of Representatives.  The
intention, clearly, was to let the democratic
processes operate on questions of taxation and
spending.  Forcing the hand of these representatives,
or removing some of their authority to decide, is a
dangerous step.

ACTION:  Please contact your own representatives soon
about the line item veto proposal, as well as other
structural changes in Congress.  Urge them to accept
changes that open up government to a more vigorous
exercise of democracy, but to reject proposals that
tend to centralize spending decisions in the White
House rather than in Congress. 

This concludes our message.  For more information,
please write to the Friends Committee on National
Legislation, 245 Second St., NE, Washington, DC 20002.
To follow these and related issues on a regular basis,
subscribe to the FCNL WASHINGTON NEWSLETTER.  Send $25
to the above address and receive 11 issues per year.