The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-09-26


ration, and ultrasm faction and the tariff were
fr passed with the distribution clause inserted which
was sufficient, 10 say nothing of its other provisions
to To oppose . as did, though by accident
was absent from the House and lost my vote its
passage IL negatiyed by the President, Con-
gress knew il would be before they sent TO him for
his yeto-not for his approval the Constitution re-
quires.
The objections of the President to the bill were
returned To the House OF Representatives, in which
it originated and the most extraordinary and unpre
cedented action was taken upon them They were
spread upon the Journal, and The House. instead OF
proceeding TO reconsider the BILL referred the Message
TO Select Committee of thirteen which the 10th
of August made a report of censure and condemna-
ton both upon the President and upon the Constitu
ton OF the United States The House, to do justice,
acquitted the Constitution by r, iusng to adopt the
sentence upon its enormes and defects, but solemn
ly, by the vote Of large majority, approved and
confirmed the sentence of harsh and violent
upon the President, whom il did not hear in his de-
fence and whom 1t had authority TO Try after
a hearing Ii directly condemned the President for
defeating and multiplying the whole action of the e
gslave authority Of the Union )" for % assuming the
title Of the office of President of the United States,
though the very members voting this sentence had at
the called session OF lS4l after solemn debate, voted
that he was " the President and that they would,
| the House of Representatives, address him such;
for failing TO redeem pledge a bill in advance
oil his approval, secured by compliance with his OPT
mons and by an informal intercourse and commune
cation between a member of the House, chaiged
with The duty OF preparing the BILL" (by whom by
the-by) and the President of the United States
himself ); Tor prostrating, defeating, annullng, by
the weak and wavering obstinacy of man, acci-
dentaily, and not by the will of the People, invested
with that terrible power the right deprive the Peo-
pie OF selfgovernment, the measure first among those
deemed by the Legislature of the Union ndispensa-
bly, necessary for the salvation of It's highest nte
rests, and Tor the restoration of lis credit its honor,
It's prosperity )" for "crownng system of contnl
ed and unreentng exercise of Executive legislation by
the alternate gross abuse Of constitutional power and
bold assumption OF power vested in him by any
law by tins veto OF the tariff bill ~ for having
pended the legislation of this Union, combined with
that amphibious production, the for approx
| ing and signing BILL and at the time striking,
by judicial construction at Its most important enact
ment, illustrated by contemporaneous illusions of
temper and OF sentiment dvuged at conviyai iesti-
Vas, and obtruded upon the public eye by the fatal
sycophant and private correspondents and
stripped to its naked by the repeated and daring
assumption both of legislative and of Judicial power "
Tor suspending the animation of the whole leglsa-
tive power OF the Union for the last fifteen months,
strangled by the hvetmes repeated structure of the
Executive chord ~ +" for multiplied insults and nju
ries to the Representatives of the People y for rus
ratmg all their labors and prostratng all their pow
by the will Of )" for striking with apo
| plexy by the Executive hand the power Of the pre-
sent Congress to enact laws essential to the welfare
of the People; )" for assuming the exercise of the
whole legislative power to himself ~ and for levy
|
| authority of law"
Such was the sentence of the House upon the Pre-
sldent, which 1t had power 10 pass. That which it
had the power to do that which of its partsans
pledged himself to do it failed do 1t had the sole
| power OF impeachment; it had solemnly voted not
only that the Presidents acts but that his Intentions
were criminal and deserved impeachment and il ex-
cused itself for not exercising the only power had
to exercise by declaring, in the language of the
port which adopted, that II "beevcd that the
had occurred in the annals OF our Union contemplate
ed by the founders of the Constitution by the grant TO
| the House OF Representatives of the power TO I'M
peach the President of the United States, but il
aware that that to the expedicnt might the
present condition of public affairs prove abortve. 1t
saw that the rreconciabe difference of opinion and
of action between the Legislative and Executive de-
partments OF the Government is but sympathetic
with the same dscordant views and feelings among
| tn c Z, ople." The will Of the People in the way
the sole ground for not exercising this sole pow
er Of impeachment But the House did not stop here
1t not only tried without power, condemned without
hearing, and failed to mpeach only for fear of the
People but, by adopting for ally this report 1t came
to solemn resolution to its action upon dlstrbu
ton and the tariff bill, from which it Immediately ai
ter departed in disgrace
BY adopting this report, it resolved
lst. ''That the appropriation of any part ofhe pro-
ceeds Of the sales OF the public lands TO the ordinary
annual expenditures would be the only etiectua and
! irrerieyabe giving away of that great and ncstma-
bic inheritance Of the American People that, II
once that growing and ineXhaustble fund shall be
doomed to form the whole any part of the ways
and means for the annual estimates of the receipts
| and the expenditures of the National Government,
the People bid FAREWELL long farewell, to every
hope of ever receiving dollars useful Improvement
from that gift of God to them thus cruelty and per-
fdiously wrested from their hands
| ID. That the power OF the present Congress to
enact laws essential the welfare the People has
been struck with spoplexy by the Executive hand
| Submission to his will is the only condition upon
which he will permit them to act. For the enact
| melt of measure earnestly recommended by hlm-
self he forbds their actions unless coupled with a
condition declared by himself to be on subject SO
totally different that he Will not suffer them to be
c, upieI IN the same law. With that condition Con-
gress cannot comply )!
Such was the decided action of the House though
its members, who voted for this report confess IN It's
own terms that they had been guilty OF the subser-
| viency base by their judgmen', OF sending a
member of the House, at the extra session, to the
President to g secure by comptanc. ch has opinions,
pledge in advance of his approval OF the bill when
II should be presented to him - though tn had once
sought by serviley sending to know his Excellency
approval in advance of sending bill itself; and
though another committee of their own, with Mr. o.
Davis the Of the press, at It's head, had sober
" reported in the Sylvester case, reason Tor now
limiting the power of removal from office by the
President, that The time is now peculiarly ausp-
cious
"That the present predlcament of the Executive
power affords argument against the truth OF the
positions have assumed. The President came Tor
tuously into office, without party, and not himself
occup, ing the position of party leady Repudiat-
ing both the party which had elevated i'm TO the
Vice Presid ncy, and that which had opposed his
election, he attempted the irrational and impossible
task of building up for himself third one. This
was an mpossiblty because the two antagonist par
ties constituted the entire People, their cohesion
having been established by years OF utilization upon
distinct aud welcontested systems of measures, and
because the President himself is very far from being
a man who, under the most favorable circumstances,
could gather together and form party. The gigao-
tic Execut We power of the Government is, at this
time as near an abstraction, deay, not1 i,h-
no cd nd ate IA