[[You'll have to lock the database permanently to stop me, admins!]]
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The '''line-item veto''' is the power of the top executive in government, either the president or a state governor, to sign a budget into law while striking out (lining out) certain expense items that the executive disfavors. This is favored by [[conservatives]] to reduce overall spending, but the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] held it to be unconstitutional at the [[federal]] level. Many state governors have this power.
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Part of the controversy around the line item veto is in the [[separation of powers]] in government. The line item veto can be used to change the meaning of passages in a law. Vetoing a 'not' can drastically alter the meaning of a sentence. It has also been used to selectively veto letters and make new law - a power that should not be in the hands of the executive branch.
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For example, the passage:
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:"A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
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Could be vetoed
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:"A <s>well regu</s>late<s>d</s> mil<s>itia, b</s>e<s>ing necessa</s>r<s>y to the security</s> of a free state, <s>the right of the people to keep and bear arms,</s> shall not be infringed."
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Which would now read:
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:"A late miler of a free state, shall not be infringed."
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== Further reading ==
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* [http://www.legis.state.wi.us/senate/sen10/news/FrankensteinVeto.pdf Frankenstein Veto - an example of Jim Doyle using line item veto on the Wisconsin budget]