| Chapter : | Introduction |
The fight to sustain the veto became a critical test of the ability of President Carter to influence members of Congress, that is, to convince the requisite number of House members to support his position by voting against the override and thus sustaining his veto. Sustaining his veto, however, would not be an easy task: the bill had passed the House by a veto-proof 319–71.
Considered in the broad historical arc of congressional-presidential relations, President Carter’s veto was another attempt—in a long line of attempts stretching back to, at least, Andrew Jackson—by a president to gain additional control over federal spending and to “rationalize” water policy. While the Constitution grants the “power of the purse” to Congress, modern presidents have frequently accused Congress of being populated with wastrels, and sought, through various means, to seize increased control over government appropriations. A former adviser to President Carter emphasized that the veto was indeed an attempt to assert presidential power in the appropriations process: “I think it was a very important moment when we tried to reclaim some of the presidential power.”3 What was extraordinary about Carter’s efforts was that he chose to focus onwater projects. Many members of Congress consider these projects important for their political survival by promoting their narrow reelection interests (Ferejohn 1974), and water projects serve as powerful evidence of their political influence in Washington, further making members of Congress “indispensible” to their constituents.