Which U.S. President's nickname was the 'Veto President'?

The U.S. President who was nicknamed the 'Veto President' was Andrew Johnson. He issued 29 total vetoes, and Congress overrode 15 of them. President Johnson vetoed more bills introduced by Congress than any other President before him. Thus, he was nicknamed the 'Veto President'.

After the U.S. Civil War, Radical Republicans in Congress and President Johnson disagreed over the terms and conditions for readmitting the seceded states to the Union. President Johnson viewed Reconstruction as an executive responsibility and blocked congressional initiatives. Congress sought to curb the power of the presidency, which had expanded in wartime, and took a less conciliatory stance toward the former Confederate states on loyalty, governance, and the rights of black citizens. In 1867 and 1868 Congress passed four Reconstruction Acts over Johnson’s vetoes.

President Johnson took a lenient approach to restoring the rebel states to the Union. Radical Republicans in Congress did not believe Johnson’s plans adequately protected the rights of freedmen and implemented their own Reconstruction measures. Johnson resisted all congressional proposals and vetoed every Reconstruction bill Congress passed.

President Andrew Johnson was the most thwarted president as measured by the number of overrides: out of 21 regular vetoes, 15 were overridden. He also used 8 pocket vetoes. By fraction overridden, he comes in second. President Pierce had a rate of 56%, compared to Johnson's 52%.

More Info: www.nps.gov

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9 Comments

Lynn Luther

Pierre Poirier, that’s what I thought as well.

Merri Sillery

John Moore, Jackson wasn't even a choice.

Merri Sillery

Gery Tillmanns, Jackson wasn't even a choice.

Chris Braid

Heard of Andrew Jackson but not Andrew Johnson, so went for him!

John W Shreve

Alan Waites, Wow. FDR was a tough ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑏𝑟𝑒

Alan Waites

With 635 vetoes you would have thought it would have been FDR Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States (1933–45), broke records and defied conventions in what has remained one of the most controversial presidencies in U.S. history. He was the first (and only) president to be elected four times to the office, ignoring the normative two terms instilled by George Washington, and he expanded the powers of the executive branch to unheard-of lengths, namely through his astounding use of the veto power, issuing vetoes a total of 635 times (372 regular, 263 pocket; 9 overridden). In 1944 he blatantly rebelled against the unwritten tradition of never vetoing a revenue measure when he turned down a tax bill that he felt only profited the greedy. He also expressed his volition on an array of issues such as homing pigeons, alien deportation, national defense, parking meters, and credits for beer wholesalers, whereas other “veto giants” like Cleveland focused their veto efforts to one specific arena. Last, FDR became the first president to personally read a veto message aloud to a joint session of Congress, thus demonstrating his desire to let his vigilance over Congress’s actions be known to its members.