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Frankenstein veto


A Frankenstein veto occurs when an American state Governor selectively deletes words from a bill, stitching together the remainder (à la Victor Frankenstein) to form a new bill different from that passed by the legislature.

The practice requires that a Governor have (or successfully claim) the power to veto individual words in a bill passed by the legislature rather than the bill in toto. It became particularly prominent in Wisconsin, where it was used by Governors of both parties "to create spending or to redirect tax funds in ways never approved by the Legislature" by "string[ing] together pieces of separate sentences to create a single new sentence...." For instance, Governor Jim Doyle used selective deletion to transform "a 272-word section of the Legislature's budget into a 20-word sentence that took $427 million from the transportation budget and gave it to public schools." The same technique was used the following year to raise the levy limits on local governments from 2% to 3.86%.

The Wisconsin State Journal, in response, stated that "no Governor should be allowed to veto all but a couple dozen words and figures across reams of text in state budgets to unilaterally create law from scratch."The New York Times called the practice "a legislative twist on the game of Mad Libs."

WISN provided a satirical example of how the Frankenstein veto works. Start with Governor Doyle's press release on the retirement of Brett Favre:

Governor Jim Doyle released the following statement today regarding the retirement of Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre:

"Like all Packer fans, I was disappointed to hear Brett Favre will not be suiting up in the green and gold next season. It has been a privilege for all of us in Wisconsin to have been able to watch one of the all-time great quarterbacks, one of the greatest all-time athletes, year after year, take the field and lead the Pack. For 16 years, Brett Favre brought fun and excitement to Lambeau Field. His talent, energy and enthusiasm for the game will be missed.

"I want to thank Brett Favre on behalf of Packer fans everywhere for his commitment to the Packers, Green Bay, and all of Wisconsin."


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