JUDGE RULES LINE-ITEM VETO AUTHORITY IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL.(MAIN)

Byline: Washington Post

WASHINGTON -- A federal judge Thursday declared President Clinton's line-item veto authority unconstitutional, in a victory for New York and Idaho. The decision opens the way for a definitive Supreme Court ruling on Congress' historic move in 1996 to give the president more control over spending.

U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan said the law -- allowing the president to cancel funds for individual programs within an appropriations bill -- violates the Constitution's requirement that the president sign or veto bills in their entirety. He said it also compromises the principle of separation of powers by giving the president part of …