Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1901-04-25

, act upon within stated time. In tn
one case they fail. and in the othe
they become a law, II no action i
taken by the executive. The constitu
!. tional authority for the veto is ample
The president may, if he wishes
return any and every bin withou
I. approval, and in each case two
/, thirds vote in both houses is /
necessity to pass a measure over thu
veto. In these days of politica
partisanship, the president thus well
nigh holds the power of life or death
over any measure. Ii generally
happens that the same wave that
carries a man into the White House
places his party in control of Congress,
or at least one of its houses. Fortified
with patronage and favors to bestow,
the president can almost invariably
depend upon more than a third of the
membership of one OF the houses to
sustain him in any veto he may see fit
to interpose. The cases are rare of
bills passed over the presidential veto.
In the hands OF a bold and designing
man, this power has untold posi-
bilities of evil.
But, as a rule, our presidents have
shown a delicacy about exercising the
veto not at all in keeping with the
current theory that the presidency is
one OF the coordinate branches of the
legislative department. The usual
course is approval of the action of
Congress; not disapproyal. The
executive has generally considered
that the passage OF a measure was
prima-facie reason for giving it his
signature, and only deep conviction
Of inherent evil or wrong lurking in it |
has moved him to return the bill |
without approval
We believe that the veto power
should be used. as in the past, sparingly, |
and only in exceptional cases. The
president is but one man, burdened BY
pressing duties His opportunities
for cleaning all the facts bearing on
any particular measure are immeasur-
ably less than those Of Congress, made
up as it is of many men, of wide
experience, hailing from all parts,
close to the people and fully acquainted
with their needs. All bills have to 20
before committees carefully selected
rom those members best fitted to
handle the different classes OF proposed I
egislation. They are here critically }.
studied. Experts and advocates give
estimony concerning all phases of the t
question. The committees report is 1
Untitled to, and receives, due weight.
The bill that has passed both houses
# Congress gains a merited prestige. .
The president, whoever he may be. | i,
annot so tar surpass Congress Ia c
ither wisdom or virtue as to set .
imself up as a court of last resort in e
9gislation. Congress may have made d
rrors, but the chances are that the Is
resident will do worse. Congress
lay have been controlled by corrupt j
but is the president above 81
lspicione Congress naturally resents
lch rebuff as the veto of one OF its v
measures by an :,
xecutive whose investigation must r
ecessarily have been SUPERFICIAL 81
ossibly a mere prejudice. !! ~
Though the constitution defines the y,
etc power, it does not explicitly e.
,cognize the president as a part of as
lie legislative branch, which, it y
eclares, ''shall consist OF a Senate H.
I'D House of Representatives" The tn
of Vermont has a similar A
revision, making no mention of the ef
oyernor as a part of the law-making al
apartment. In this state the ouber- a,
ltorial veto is shorn of all power of
;cept that of moral suasion. it it
quiring only a majority vote to pass u
lis over veto. IN