A president has the power to veto a law in its entirety, or to sign it. Until recently, signing statements were rare. No [[United States Constitution]] provision, federal statute or common-law principle explicitly permits or prohibits signing statements. There is a specific executive responsibility to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed" in [[Article TwoOne of the United States Constitution|Article III]], [[Article TwoOne of the United States Constitution#Section 37: Presidential responsibilitiesBills|Section 37]].Signing(in statementsthe have[[Presentment anClause]] uncertainempowers legalthe status,president givento thatveto theya havelaw beenin toleratedits forentirety, 20or yearsto butsign contradictit. theidea[[Article Two of fullthe vetoUnited andStates responsibilityConstitution|Article toII]], Congress.[[Article TheyTwo doof notthe appearUnited toStates haveConstitution#Section legal3: forcePresidential byresponsibilities|Section themselves.3]] Nevertheless,requires that the deexecutive facto''"take powercare stemming fromthat the waylaws abe lawfaithfully is implemented can make them more significant than the law itselfexecuted"''.
Signing statements do not appear to have legal force by themselves. As a practical matter, they may give notice of the way that the Executive intends to implement a law, which may make them more significant than the text of the law itself.
