Obama Plans Empty Gesture on Spending Control

Part of the "Contract With America" in 1994 was giving the president the line-item veto, which the Republicans did complete, giving a president that power for the first time.  Unfortunately, the Supreme Court disagreed and we went back to the all-or-nothing bills we have now.  Consequently, that's how a lot of pork and stupid things end up in legislation because Congress knows the president has to kill the whole bill to eliminate the stupid stuff.

Obama now claims he wants something similar to the line-item veto, though as this article states, there are tools he can use to reduce spending but so far has not chosen to do so:

President Obama, in his latest effort to signal fiscal responsibility against the rising debt, plans this month to ask Congress to give him and future presidents greater power to try to delete individual items from spending bills.

In doing so, Mr. Obama will join a long line of his predecessors who have sought either line-item veto power or, after the Supreme Court in 1998 ruled such a veto unconstitutional, some other rescission authority that passes muster. Congress once again is unlikely to be receptive, though growing antidebt sentiment could give the proposal life.

Before Congress breaks for its Memorial Day recess, the White House will send it proposed legislation “to give the president a new tool to reduce unnecessary or wasteful spending,” according to an administration official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Under existing law, a president can send Congress a request to rescind items in spending bills after a bill is signed into law, but if Congress does not approve the request within 45 working days, the money must be released. And Congress, traditionally protective of its constitutional power of the purse, usually ignores such presidential requests, killing them.

President George W. Bush did not propose any rescissions, according to the Congressional Research Service. Republicans in Congress have challenged Mr. Obama to do so, but he has not. Under Mr. Obama’s proposed legislation to expedite and strengthen the process in a president’s favor, Congress would have to vote on any rescissions.

A president would have 45 working days after signing a spending bill into law to submit to Congress items to rescind, the administration official said, and Congress would have 25 days to act. The House and Senate would have to vote the package up or down, without amendments.

“This new, enhanced rescission authority not only will empower the president and the Congress to eliminate unnecessary spending, but also discourage waste in the first place,” the official said.

I don't think Obama is going to get what he's asking for, and frankly, I don't think he cares. I think he's looking at the polls which show many voters concerned about out-of-control spending, so an empty gesture is required to try to fool everybody once again.