The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-08-21

/ sident acts and speaks through the several De-
partments in relation to subjects which apper-
tain to their respective duties" Assa
Now, let the Intelligencel assail these doc
trines, or admit ours, for they are Identical Is
il possible that these experienced editors, so long
acquainted with these authorities-so anxious
that established and settled constructions of the
Constitution should not be questioned, are now
starting these noveltes7 Are they, by sophis-
try and defamation, seeking to sanction, by new
opinions, new and unheard Of administration
of the Government-whereby men never elect
ed by the People are to control him who is, are
to have the right Of advising the President, and
to have it proclaimed for tyranny, if he does not
take their advice and submit to the control of
those whom, by the Constitution and the laws
which he has sworn 10 fulfil, he is bound from
time to time to order and INSTRUCT" Might tnot,
witha charity like theirown, be supposed thatthey
had, in the pressure of present difficulties, called
some raw, rash hand to their columns, who,
! fresh from his grammar, but unacquainted with
these standard authorities on the Constitution,
had been led away by speech of Mr.. Bib,
which he does not understand, to do that gentle
man the injustice of making him the asserter of
| doctrine which he must and would disown2
If Mr.. Bib intended his remarks to apply to
Cabinet officers, and their political acts in their
several departments, then what would be the
weight of his authority opposed to that we have
quoted2 When he says, four officers are Off
GERS of the law, not of the President" and
asks, care they but his mere instruments and
agents 2" We say the act of Congress answers.
1t says of these Cabinet officers, he is '.from
time to time to order and instruct Them" We
say to him, and to the Inteligencer, and to all
who ask such question, that Mr.. Madison an
swers-they are his eyes and hands. We say
the Supreme Court answers-"they act By his
authority and in CON formity NTH has orders.
IN such cases their acts are his acts" He
speaks through them" We say further, (and
we count this as fully equal authority that the
whole country has answered in the same way.
| Since the formation of the Government, have
not the People, without question, held every
President responsible for all the Executive acts
| of all the members of his Cabinet Has any
President or his friends ever pretended to use
this screen of Cabinet Minister'S Would it
not be held absolute degradation in any Presi-
dent to shrink from this responsibility, and at
tempt to lay it on the heads Of Departments
If Mr.. Bib meant to include the official acts
of these officers in the remarks quoted from him
by the Intelligencer, he spoke most loosely, and
/ not with ind, al ha elf
shows that the Presidents Protest was consider
ed (whether justly or not is immateriaD as claim
ing this power of control over all the acts of
all inferior officers and this was the doctrine
that Mr. Bib resisted-and if il was claimed,
it was rightly resisted: for there is no doubt but
that there are some acts assigned to some officers
| in relation to which the President can have no
such control. This was the case in Marbury
and Madison; and yet, in that very case, the
Supreme, Court distinguished between such acts
and those in which the President exercises the
political powers given to him by the Constitu-
ton, in which the Court in the plainest terms,
recognize his right of control over the members
the present controversy, and establishes our po
sition p f1 f3oiH5, ]"&a I&4t - .E@"@E@ "N.
The vote upon the Protest therefore, quoted
so triumphantly as authority, is no authority
upon the point at ISSUE &"@ a4sh- H&5 h5'
1t shows that the majority OF the Senate, in
GLIDING the present President considered the
Protest Gas Mr.. Bib did as asserting the power
to control all acts of all officers-and this they
denied And the minority did not so consider
the Protest, as asserting such claim, and there
fore, and not because they claimed the power,
voted against the resolution.
But never before, never till now, did any court,
speaker, or writer pretend that the members Of
the Cabinet were to be independent ministers Of
Government, having right to adpise the Presi-
dent, and carry on the political duties of their.
respective departments free from his. control.
Such a Government, we hold, with Mr.. HAM
mToN would be like that of "the Decemvirs Of
Rome more to be dreaded in their usurpations
than any one Of them would have been"
And now what are the objections to this doc
trine2 1t Is arbitrary-savors of tyranny, to al
low one man to control six. Ay, but this one
man has been chosen by the People, and the six
have not. He has selected the six TO aid him
and act for him, in duties, for the fit discharge
Of which he, and not they, are responsible The
writers Of the Federalist and trainers of the
Constitution thought this no tyranny. Let the
Intelligencer read, and answer if it can, the ar
gument in the 10th No. of the Federalist-l
There il is said 1t is evident from these con-
siderations that the plurality Of the Executive
tends to deprive the people Of the two greatest
securities they can have for the faithful exercise
Of any delegated power: first, the restraints Of
public opinion, which lose their efficacy, as well
on account of the division of the censure atten-
dant on bad measures among number, as on
accounto Of the uncertainty on whom it ought to
ell and sncnndlu the ornnrfllnifu nf discover