General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Thomas Franks, the Clintons and "phony" Democratic populists in the New Gilded Age [View all]JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)When I was a child presidents pretty commonly vetoed bills. It is sometimes just a gesture for the record, but it means something important when a Democratic president vetoes a bill that is not in the interests of working people.
Franklin Roosevelt 635 vetoes
Harry S. Truman 250 vetoes
Dwight D. Eisenhower 181 vetoes.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_presidential_vetoes
Note that those three presidents presided over either changes that led to some of the most prosperous years, years of great economic growth for America or to the years of that prosperity and growth.
So what if Congress overrides a veto. At least the president stood up for something and people know what the president's values are.
Bill Clinton, 37 vetoes