Hungarian president to sign constitutional amendment into law, says he has no other option

BUDAPEST, Hungary – Stating he has no other legal options, Hungary's president will sign into law a constitutional amendment which critics say supports the government's efforts to weaken the democratic system of checks and balances.

Speaking on state television Wednesday night, President Janos Ader said signing the bill into law was his "only constitutional choice."

One of the main faults of the long amendment is that it prevents the president from asking the Constitutional Court to review the substance of the changes to the constitution, limiting his scope only to procedural errors.

The amendment was approved Monday by lawmakers from the governing parties led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban and includes passages earlier struck down was unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court.