pocket veto

noun
1.
a veto of a bill brought about by the president's failure to sign it within ten days of the adjournment of Congress.
2.
a similar action on the part of any legislative executive.
Origin
1835-45, Americanism

pocket-veto

[pok-it-vee-toh] /ˈpɒk ɪtˌvi toʊ/
verb (used with object), pocket-vetoed, pocket-vetoing.
1.
to veto (a bill) by exercising a pocket veto.
Examples from the web for pocket veto
  • There is no evidence that any such pocket veto was used to frustrate an appeal here.
British Dictionary definitions for pocket veto

pocket veto

noun (US)
1.
the action of the President in retaining unsigned a bill passed by Congress within the last ten days of a session and thus causing it to die
2.
any similar action by a state governor or other chief executive
pocket veto in Culture

pocket veto definition


An automatic veto of a bill that occurs if the president or governor neither signs nor vetoes a bill within ten days of receiving it — as long as the legislature adjourns during that period. If the legislature convenes during that period, the bill will automatically become law. A pocket veto cannot be overridden by the legislature, though the bill can be reintroduced at the next legislative session.

Idioms and Phrases with pocket veto

pocket veto

The implied veto of a bill by the President of the United States or by a state governor or other executive who simply holds the bill without signing it until the legislature has adjourned. For example, The President used the pocket veto to kill the crime bill. This expression dates from the 1830s and alludes to putting the unsigned bill inside one's pocket.