34. Who vetoes bills?

  • The President

The president has veto power. This means that the president can reject a bill passed by Congress. If the president vetoes a bill, he prevents it from becoming a law.

The president can send the bill back to Congress unsigned. Often he will list reasons why he rejects it. The president has 10 days to evaluate the bill.

If the president does not sign the bill after 10 days and Congress is in session, the bill automatically becomes a law.

If the president does nothing with the bill and Congress adjourns within the 10-day period, the bill does not become law—this is called a “pocket veto.” If two-thirds of the House and two-thirds of the Senate vote to pass the bill again, the bill becomes a law, even though the president did not sign it.

This process is called “overriding the president’s veto.” It is not easy to do.

** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test. During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.

Download PDF