[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 30 (Monday, March 14, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H1374]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          RESTRAINING SPENDING

  (Mr. COOPER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. COOPER. Mr. Speaker, President Bush says he wants to restrain 
spending. But regardless of the budget that the House passes this week, 
President Bush has never used his two constitutional powers to restrain 
spending. Number one, the big veto: he has never used it. He is the 
first President since James Garfield in 1881 never to use the veto. And 
poor President Garfield was only in office for 6 months. President Bush 
is now in his fifth year of his Presidency.
  Secondly, the little veto: I wrote an article on this in the New York 
Times last Friday. The rescission power. All President Bush needs is a 
majority of House and Senate Republicans to support his spending cuts, 
and he can cut anything in the Federal Government that he wants to. The 
rescission power is filibuster-proof. He does not need 60 votes in the 
Senate. He has Fast Track pressure on Congress to respond, but he has 
never used that little veto power either.
  President Clinton used it 163 times. When has President Bush ever 
used either the big veto power or the little veto power? The American 
public needs to know.

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