ABSTRACT
The legislative veto was a political accommodation between Congress and the president designed to serve a dual purpose: effective policy making and the preservation of congressional oversight. At best the legislative veto was an eminently logical accommodation to the complexities of modem government—precisely the kind of adaptation to contemporary circumstances which the Founders had in mind when they designed our system of government. The legislative veto was originally formulated in 1932 to allow Herbert Hoover to reorganize the executive branch without requiring congressional approval at every step. The legislative veto took a number of forms ranging from a veto by a single committee chairperson to a concurrent resolution requiring two-thirds of each house. The alternatives to which Congress could turn for policy influence have made more difference than is commonly supposed. In 1976 the legislative veto was challenged in a domestic case concerning the Federal Election Campaign Act as amended in 1974.
