The Middlebury people's press. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1841-1843, 1841-10-05
PEOPLES PRESS.
Tuesday Morning, Oct. 5, lS4I
VETO AGAIN.

VEN auAlN.
We are not among those who would wish
TO NEEDLE with the veto power merely because
it comes in conflict with any one favorite meas
ure of the party to which we belong. nor are
we certain that it is the best time to agItate
the subject, when the merit of limiting it, will
be likely to be COMPOUNDED with the bank qles-
ton with which its exercise has been so re-
Gently identif ed. But every true hearted re.
publican in the land must be satisfied that
sooner CT later some change in the organic law
Of the country should be made, either erase.
jig the veto from he constitution entirely
or so modifying ii, as TO leave the president no
other power than suspension of the opera
ton of legislative acts, so long as it may be
deemed necessary for Congress to recover
from any cffervcscence Of feeling, against
which it was chiefly intended to guard. In
the adoption of the Constitution this power
vested in single man TO arrest the legislation
of Congress, was reluctantly submitted 10 by
by the people. But il was urged upon them
as conservative CT the liberties of which were
so peculiarly Jealous by the writer's of the Fed
eralist who argued. First, "That the po'cer
",-1s necessary, 10 enable the President TO de-
"Gend himself against the encroachnlenis Of The
s1egislaiire department. 2dly, That it icould
''p,ercnt lars from being past 'ciH haste, mad
'.rertaney or design. And 3dly, The people
s',cere assured that The po,cer rou'd nerer be
"ersrcised ercept where the pubfr good 'Oas er-
"idcni7g aud palpi6ly sacrificed" But the OK
pericnce of the county ever since the adoption
of The constitution has furnished complete
RECITATION orthe Arguments Of these writer's, d
the benefits which were 10 be derived from
this feature of the Constitution. The execu-
tive, instead Of limiting the exercise of the
veto power to self defence, has seriously en-
croached upon the Legislative department OF
the government, defeated schemes Of public
utility long matured and loudly called for by
the people, and exercised it frequently and ar
bitrarv, regardless of authority or precedent,
and uares;rained by the purposes for which it
was conferred by the constitution. Instead
of being check on bad legislation it has de.
feated the good. Instead of proving conser.
vative of popular rights, it has converted Con-
grcss into pageant, and bowed the nation in
10 submission TO the fiat of single man. u
nited with the incalculable patronage of the
President, the exercise of the veto power has
converted the executive into monster which
threatens to lay waste and overshadow every
other department of the government. Used
as it nav be, and too often has been to over.
rule measures upon the mere grounds of ex-
pediency, it prostrates legislative power at the
feet of executive dictation. When we find a
it of the Constitution, Congress cannot act
ITSELF 1t is 10 longer the exponent of the
ponular will. II must consult the designs, O..
piuions and caprices of the President, with as
much serviItv as if he held his power not BY
the will of the people, but "6y the Grace Of
God" How completely are these remarks
exemplifed by the proceedings Of the last con-
gress, i'll relation to the Bank bill. The orr
ginal bill of Mr.. Clay, was the one most &C
ceptable 10 congress and the country. But
during the whole course of the discussion, the
representatives of free people trembled in
Difference TO the views Of the Executive, and
the bill was eventually misshaped to secure the
presidential appreciation. But after all, their
menlal labors were utterly COMPOUNDED, by the
exercise OF negative, which no monarch Ill
England has dared to exercise for two hundred
years, and which would have cost Queen Vic
toria her kingdom and her crown. Congress
then had no other alternative ia Carrying out
measure which they deemed Of vital impor.