Trent Lott: “Second look at waste. I like that. I like them taking another look at waste. And I like putting it against the deficit.…”

“Second look at waste. I like that. I like them taking another look at waste. And I like putting it against the deficit. In fact, I remember back in the 1970s arguing that a President should be able to rescind funding, not spend money that Congress said he should spend because they had been doing it back since the time of Jefferson. That led to, in 1974, the Budget Empowerment Act, which stopped President Nixon and subsequent Presidents from doing that. There is no question that we sometimes adopt bills that spend funds that should not be spent or events overtake spending. I think there should be some process for a President to get a reconsideration. There may be better ways to use that money. But I do think we have a constitutional role in that too. Once we indicate this is where we think it should be spent, the overwhelming burden should be to explain why not. The question to you, I say to the Senator, is this: No. 1, why is this different from the line-item veto that we passed that was stricken down by the Supreme Court?”