From the NY Times:
President Bush cast a futile veto on Tuesday, rejecting a bill that would protect doctors from cuts in their Medicare payments. But hours later, the House and Senate voted to override the veto, making the Medicare measure the fourth bill to become legislation over Mr. Bush’s opposition.
The president’s veto message to the House said that he objected to the bill because it was “fiscally irresponsible” and relied on “short-term budget gimmicks” that do not address the long-term fiscal soundness of the Medicare program.
But the House voted, 383 to 41, on Tuesday afternoon to override the veto. Soon afterward, the Senate voted by 70 to 26 to do so. Although the Senate vote was close enough to provide some suspense, it was still over the two-thirds needed, as a number of conservative Republicans who typically side with the president broke with him on this issue.
Filed under: Uncategorized
