WASHINGTON (AP) – The White House saw it coming, but still it stung.
When President Barack Obama was hit with the first veto override of his presidency on Wednesday, it landed as a clear reminder of his dwindling political influence, years of confounding relationships with Congress and shaky prospects for the few legislative priorities he has left. The fiercely competitive president has said he intends to keep working with Congress until the final buzzer sounds in January, but it’s not clear how much juice he’ll have left.
Only one of his 44 fellow Democrats in the Senate – Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada – stood by Obama to uphold his veto of a piece of Sept. 11 legislation. Every Republican voted to override. The Republican-led House followed suit – eagerly exceeding the two-thirds threshold necessary to push the legislation into law over the president’s objections.
It was, perhaps, an unavoidable turn of events. No modern president has made it through two full terms without Congress overriding at least one of his vetoes. Obama’s record measures up well compared to his two predecessors. George W. Bush suffered four and Bill Clinton two.
It might also be expected that if an override was coming it would happen now, at the tail end of a term, just weeks ahead of the election, when the political interests of the soon-to-be retiring president and the still-in-the-game lawmakers are at their widest.