David Minge: “I rise to support the line-item veto. This body in 1996 talked long and hard about how we were going to share the…”

“I rise to support the line-item veto. This body in 1996 talked long and hard about how we were going to share the sacrifice across the country to make the tough decisions to balance the budget. Indeed, there is light at the end of the tunnel now, and that is very encouraging. But the fact of the matter is, we cannot expect to reach the end of that tunnel, nor can we expect to maintain our resolve to balance the budget, unless the sacrifice is truly shared. We have not yet developed in this House or in Congress clear rules that avoid situations where one part of the country feels that another part of the country is walking away with special projects or special opportunities. I have worked with Senator McCain and others to try to raise the standards in this respect. I know there are many others in this body that share that feeling. Otherwise, the line-item veto would not have passed by such an overwhelming majority. Mr. Speaker, I think that it is incumbent upon us to work with the White House to try to establish clear standards for, first, the use of the line-item veto, and, second, for our appropriations process.”