Statement on Signing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020

This signing statement ("Statement on Signing the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020") was issued alongside a bill the President signed into law. The President's stated concerns: "C, title 35, subtitle C) and does not purport to alter the definition of the United States exclusive economic zone for all other purposes, including those set forth in Department of State Public Notice 2237 published in the Federal Register , Vol." Signing statements allow presidents to express constitutional or policy objections to specific provisions of legislation they have just signed. Their legal weight and constitutional propriety have been contested since the practice became common in the 1980s.

Critics — including the American Bar Association — argue that using signing statements to announce an intent to not enforce portions of a law effectively creates a line-item veto, which the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in Clinton v. City of New York (1998). Defenders argue presidents have a duty to identify constitutional concerns and that signing statements are a legitimate form of executive interpretation. The constitutional propriety depends on whether this specific statement announces non-enforcement or merely records the President's views.