Historic Veto Override Fails

It looks like the governor will go on appointing Wisconsin’s chief outdoors leader.

The state Assembly has failed to override Gov. Jim Doyle’s veto of a bill that would have stripped governors of their power to appoint the Department of Natural Resources secretary. The bill would have handed appointment power instead to the Natural Resoruces Board, a citizen panel that controls DNR policy.

The bill’s supporters claimed board appointment would keep politics out of conservation decisions. Doyle countered the DNR is stronger and more accountable with the governor clearly behind its leader.

A successful override takes a two-thirds vote of members present. With 96 representatives voting Tuesday, an override would have taken 64 votes. Democrats who introduced the bill could muster only 58 votes.