The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1854-05-31
SPEECH of
Hen. George Z. Badger.
uF NORTH CAROLINA,
On the Presidents Veto Message.
Delivered In tiie Senate of the Uniled States.
Msy N. 1854

Asy u. 1851.
Mr.. PREsIDESr; The Constitution o.
she United States having provided thai
when the President Of the Unitef
States does not approve a bill uhicl
has passed 10th hnusrs of Congress
he SHALL return il 10 tie House IL
which il originated. with his obiec.
tions thereto, and that the House shall
proceed TO reconsider the bill, il fol-
lows as necessary inference thatit Was
the purpose Of the Constitution that
the House so recunsidering bill
shnuld give careful and respectful at.
tention 10 the objections taken by the
President. and thus in pursuance ol
/ the Constitution sent 10 that body.
The provision Of the Constitution would
otherwise be unmesning. For il does
not authorize the pesident to disap-
prove merely, and then require re.
consideration. but itmakes 1t his duty,
with the disapproval. to communicate
in writing his objections. Therefore,
as have already said, il becomes no,
only the right. bat the duty. Of the bo-
DIV to which the bill is returned, care
fully to consider the objections Of the
President.
II is my purpose this morning TO dis
charge, so far as | AIN concerned. the
duty which devolves upon US oi giving
that careful examination to the obiec-
tions Of the President to the bill for
the benefit Of the INDECENT insane; to
submit views which to me appear to be
just, to be deman,ledby the importance
ofthe matters embraced in the message,
and which show, as | think, that the
objections taken by the President have
no foundation. Ii is manifest. that, in
diseharging this duty, high courtesy
towards the official fanctionary at the
head of the Cover I<snent demands that
the investigation should meet the OBJ.
jections Of the President, so far as We
understand them, upon their true me-
rits; and that no attempt should be
made to resort TO mere questions of
words, no eHort to withdraw the at
tention Of the Senate or the country
IRON the principles which are really
at stake; but that, ON The contrary,
disregarding all minor topics. putting
the dlalectics Of verbal criticism EN-.
tirely aside, we should consider, fairly
aud respectfully, the objections which
the President has felt it his duty to
make, according TO their substance and
intended import. That duty shall
endeavor to discharge in the manner
and with the spirit | have indicated.
This belongs to my position as a mem
Der of this body, and this would not
wiliully disregard If | did not occupy
that position.
II understand the message Of the
President OF the United States Alright,
he objects to the passage of the bill
providing for the INDECENT insane upon
the ground, first, that Congress has no
power under the Constitution to devote
any portion Of the public domain to
the purposes indicated in the bill; and /,
in the neSt place, if the bill were free
from that objection, il the Constitution
did authorize an application Of a por-
ton of these lands to the general pur-
poses specified in the bill, yet this
measure is obnoxious toa constitutional
objection, because the subsidiary pro-
visions Of the bill, which undertake Ia
carry out its general object, assume
an unconstitutional authority over and
interfere in an improper manner with
those local concerns which, under the
Constitution, belong exclusively to the
States.
Now, MIR. President, with regard to
the first question-of the general con-
stltutional puwer-it seems to NE that
there are several considerations advert
ed to by the President, in his message,
which may be laid entirely aside. 1t
is manifest, IN the first place, that no
one claims or asserts the power of
Congress to dispose Of the public do
main under the first clause of the
eighth section of the first article of the
Constitution, which gives to Congress
the power Of laying duties and imposts
and other taxes; therefore, it is mat
ter entirely immateral to the present
discussion whether the expression, TO
provide for the common defence and
general welfare" following that grant
Of power, is to be construed in the ma.
ture of a new grant, charging and in
addition to what was previously ex-
pressed, or as a limitation upon the
power Of taxation, or as directory pro-
vision as to the ends for which the
money raised shall be applied.
Mr.. President, in the next place, on
this part of the case, we are troubled
with no Investigation about what are
or what are not the reserved rights Of
the States, because when we speak ol
the reserved rights Of the States, Of
the individual States, the separate
members of the Union, we mean rights
which hetour to them i'm their scpsratc