Will's column against the line item veto gets coveted LotD status today. The line-item veto allows the president to excise lines from bills passed by Congress, which is to say he can pick and choose what he wants to keep from what Congress passes. On the face of it, that's a fairly fine idea, one that could help control pork spending and tamp down on some of the worst in special interest excesses.
A bit deeper, though, and it's an awful concept, a further aggregation of power to the executive who'll then use the tool to punish his political enemies in Congress. The president is not constitutionally authorized to slice up legislation into more pleasing shapes, and giving him that authority short-circuits the ability of congressional leaderships to makes the deals that shepherd controversial legislation through committees. Neither outcome is good, but more compelling, to me, is the first. What we need right now is for Congress to re-exert their power against the executive, not further weaken their bargaining position.
