This is the Congress that couldn't legislate straight. Apparently Congress sent the wrong Farm Bill to Bush for him to veto. Therefore it was all invalid.
The House overwhelmingly rejected President Bush's veto Wednesday of a $290 billion farm bill, but what should have been a stinging defeat for the president became an embarrassment for Democrats.
Only hours before the House's 316-108 vote, Bush had vetoed the five-year measure, saying it was too expensive and gave too much money to wealthy farmers when farm incomes are high. The Senate then was expected to follow suit quickly.
Action stalled, however, after the discovery that Congress had omitted a 34-page section of the bill when lawmakers sent the massive measure to the White House. That means Bush vetoed a different bill from the one Congress passed, leaving leaders scrambling to figure out whether it could become law.
Buried in this story is the true impulse to act quickly to resolve this problem:
The legislation includes election-year subsidies for farmers and food stamps for the poor - spending that lawmakers could promote when they are back in their districts over the Memorial Day weekend.
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