Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1834-04-11

npps;bility. to the DEGREES of fate which consttu
ted the fundamental law of the system. Jupi-
ter reigned in Olympus, Neptune over the ocean,
and Pluto in the regions below. Apollo presld-
ed over the arts, Mars over the affairs OF war,
and Minerva over those of council. But, sir,
the Jupiter ofthis new system OF political idola-
try, not satisfied with holding the exclusive do
minion of Olympus, darts from his empyrean
height like a baleful comet dashing wildly
through the heavenly spheres, invades the pro-
vinces and usurps the powers OF all the other
Gods-snatches from Apollo his arrows, from
Neptune his trident, from Mars his lance, from
Minerva her impenetrable agis, from Pluto his
consuming fires, from the Furies their scourge,
and from the Fates their shears-and thus hold
ing in his hands the issue of life and death, and
brandishing the armour OF the whole pantheon,
he proudly challenges what none dare refuse,
the massive obedience and trembling homage OF
all the minor divinities-
ssShakes his ambrosial curls and gives the nod,
To stamp of fates, the sanction OF God"
But. sir to come down to more practical
view of this subject, propose topursue, a little
more infinitely, the train ofargumentl into which
have been drawn by the extraordinary theory
of executive power, now for the hrst time pro-
mulgated in these United States.
The hon. gentleman from New York, by his
executive syllogism, has placed in the hands OF
the President of the United States political
lever more powerful than that OF Archlmedes.
Sir, that great mechanician, eXultlng IN the dis
covery of new principle in mechanics, Is sad
to have exclaimed, sc give me place to STAND
upon. and will move the world" SO may the
! President exclaim with his potent syloglsm IN
his hand, and his friend from tennessee very
opportunely steps in and supplies the desldera-
tum, which Archimedes never discovered. Yes,
sir, in an insignificant clause OF the Consutu-
ton, the mere title page of the executive power
a. Lrr al0n
upon which the fulcrum of this mighty lever is
to be paced-and at single sweep of the beam,
the whole constitutional fabric OF this Govern
ment may be toppled into ruins
The gentleman from New York, who has ia
vored us with SO many new views OF the theory OF
| Government, seems to have been laborlng under
some extraordinary influence which has thrown
into all his leading propositions, an ambitious
! spirit of paradox.
After asserting that the legislative power was
| in its nature unalienabe, he goes on to remark
that ii is not so NTH the erecutire potoer Ihat
| the legislative power cannot create an agency
to carry its will into effect; but that the eXecu-
| tive power is subject to no such limitation. SIR,
| if he had taxed his ingenuity to the utmost he
could not have formed a proposition In more d.
rect contradiction to the truth 1.-THE case. From
what book did the gentleman from New York
learn that the President Of the United States, by
virtue of his constitutional power, has rghtto
create an agent to execute ms Will, or Tor any
other purpose, except where he is especially au-
thorized to do so by the legislative power! who
ever before heard of an executive agent, mean
ing by that an agent created by the President,
| to execute his will instead of being created by
| the Legislative power to execute its will, OF in
| other words. to execute the law? If the Presi-
dent possesses this inherent right, we should
speak of him as our dread sovereign Butltis
not only untrue, in point OF theory, that the eX-
ecutiye officers ofths Government are, as they
have been represented, the arms, aud the eyes,
and the instruments of the President; but it is
true that the President himself, and all the eX-
ecutive officers who are associated with him in
administering the Government, are nothing but
| the instruments Of the law-making power in ex
ecuting the will Of that power. The President
of the United States, it is true, is clothed with
two different classes OF power clearly dlscrlml-
mated from each other With the concurrence
| of two-thrds of the Senate he exercises one
branch of the law-maklng power, the power of
making treaties, and as to that he stands in the
same relation to the diplomatic officers, that
Congress does to all the rest, except that he can
not pay them without law fixing their salaries
and making an appropriation for it.
The treaty-making power IS, in certain
sense, law-making power. That power is
vested in the President Of the United States
and the Senate, two-thirds concurring, and all
| those whom they may appoint IN the execution
of that power are, in the sense in which gentle
men have used the term executive officers, re-
sponsible to the President. But, this executive
| power goes no further. Every other power
which the President can exercise under the Con-
stitution is d power exercised 10y the authority
of the law, and under the law. He cannot
raise his finger without the authority of this
legislative power which, it now seems, is to be
| trampled in the dust, and denied even the power
to create an agency! Why, sir, can we not be-
fore the sun sets this very day strike from exist
ence the whole of this executive machinery, the
heads of departments, the army, the navy, the
judiciary and ALL leaving the President to wave
i his barren sceptre over the solitude? And can
we not before the setting of to-morrow's sun
rear up another fabric as powerful and as splen-
did2 And yet the legislative power has no right
to create an executive agency!
| Mr. Speaker, this is not mere abstract ques-
ton. 1t is grave and solemn question-prac-
tically and intimately connected with the ope-
rations of our political system Cut that con-
nexion which binds the executive officers OF
this Government to Congress-destroy their
responsibility to the lawmaking power-let
them cease to be the agents of the law, and
make them the instruments of the executive
will, and what then, | ask, is the legislative