Former U.S. President Ronald Reagan signing the veto of a bill.
In the United States, one of the major powers that the President has is the ability to veto, which gives him the legal right to stop Congress from passing a piece of legislation. There are two types of Presidential vetoes: the regular veto and the pocket veto.
The Regular Veto
The regular veto is the most common form of veto that the President exercises over bills. After a bill has passed through Congress, it is presented to the President before being signed into law. Through the regular veto, the President may choose to reject a bill that they do not agree with. Simply put, this is how that works:
When a bill reaches their desk, the President has ten days, excluding Sundays, to sign the bill into law or return it to Congress with objections. If the President decides to manually veto the bill, the bill goes back to the chamber of origin, often with a message explaining why the bill was vetoed.
Once the bill reaches Congress after being vetoed, it may decide to override the veto. The override would have to be done through a two-thirds majority vote in the House of Representatives and the Senate in favor of the bill. If they do so, the bill will be considered law despite the presidential veto. If they do not achieve this, then the veto remains in place, and the bill is not enacted.
This gives the President somewhat of a check on Congress while also allowing Congress to have the ability to push back if they feel really strongly about a certain bill. The use of overriding, however, is rare because, as mentioned before, an overwhelming two-thirds majority is needed for that.
The Pocket Veto
On the other hand, there is the pocket veto, which is a bit different and less commonly used. This type of veto can only occur under specific conditions, mainly when Congress is in recess. When Congress sends a bill to the President and then adjourns before the ten-day period for the President to sign the bill comes to end, the President can choose to just ignore the bill and not sign it. If they do nothing, the bill does not become law. This is known as a pocket veto because, symbolically, the bill goes straight into the President's pocket, never to see the light of day again.
Unlike the regular veto, there's no way for Congress to override a pocket veto. Once Congress has adjourned, they can't gather the necessary votes to force the bill into law. Therefore, the pocket veto is absolute.
The key here is timing. If Congress is about to go into recess, and a bill is on the President's desk, they might strategically use the pocket veto if they oppose the legislation. However, if Congress is still in session (with more than ten days left before adjournment), the President must either sign the bill or return it to Congress with a regular veto.
Legislative Implications
Veto power shapes how legislation is crafted and passed. If they know a bill might be vetoed, Congress can, at times, tailor legislation to gain the President's approval or to make sure they have the votes necessary for an override, if needed. This can lead to intense negotiation and compromise between the legislative and executive branches. The veto power adds to the checks and balances system and ensures that no single branch dominates the process of legislation, maintaining a balance of power.
Conclusion
Understanding the regular veto and the pocket veto reveals a major part of how lawmaking works in the U.S. Both of these vetoes allow the President to influence the passage and content of proposed laws significantly. However, at the same time, Congress, under specific conditions, is also given the means to challenge presidential decisions, which prevents Presidential overreach. All of this is fundamental for American democracy and the passage of bills into law!