Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1866-02-27
The Veto of the Freedmen's Bureau Bill.

message sent 10 Tue OebdsC vi ~'ASH"J'
vite all our readers carefully study II ana We
also print the speech of Senator Irumbull, winch
seems TO US to eHectualiy dispose OF ali the OBJ
jections raised by the message. Our readers must
bear in mind that the Freedmens Bureau law, now
operation, by its terms expires IN one ear aiier
the close of the rebellion, and 1t had therefore oe-
come necessary for Congress to pass some law ior
the protection of the Freedmen, or leave them to
the care of their late masters,-which is such care
| as the off beslows upon the lamb. This bill was
carefully framed by Gen. Howard, the Chief of
the present Freedmen's Bureau, Was patiently
discussed in the Senate and the House, was not
opposed by any Republicans IN either Sooy tx
cept in some unimpor'ant details, and was hnaiiy
passed with none but Democratic votes against 1t.
In vetoing it, the President has shown manifest
purpose Of raising an issue between his policy OF
reconstruction and the policy Of the great majority
in Congress; and it is in that view, much more
than in the mere TACT that he has vetoed the bill,
that this message has significance. If the Presi-
dent had contented himself with stating the OBJ
Elections to the bill which he has urged in the first
| part of the MESA. e, and had suggested to Con-
gress that the bill be modified in those particulars,
there would have been little excitement occasioned
| by it. But the President went great way far
| Their than that, and only objected to the bill
in detail, but in principle. He, in effect, says
that he is willing to trust the Freedmen to the
legislatures of the Southern States, at present
reconstructed. 1t this be so, there is need of
any Freedmen's Bureau; aad the inevitable infer
ence from the whole message is, that the President
will oppose any legislation which would be Of any
| avail If adopted.
But even this expression that the Freedmen
need protection against their late masters,
important as it is when coming from him who has
power to prevent all legislation which is not con-
Cured in by twothirds OF each House of Congress,
is of far less consequence than the presidential
declaration that Congress had no business to leg
islate upon the subject while Southern Senators
and II Representatives excluded from its de-
alterations. In this connection the President
sait:
"The President of the United States stands
toward the country IN a somewhat different atti
tude from that OF any member of Congress chosen
from Il single district State. The President is
chosen by the people OF all tie States. Eleven
States not, at this time, represented in either
duty on all proper occasions present their just
claims to Congress-"
Perhaps he President torgets tina, be wss not
chosen by the votes of these eleven States, or of
ary OF them. These States were not represented
in the electoral college in 1864, and President
Johnson is under no more obligation than Con-
gress to speak represent the claims of those
States. Congress Is the national legislature,
Andrew Johnson is the national President, and
both of them are sworn to the faithful discharge
of their duties and the President is certainly il
logical, not to use any harsher adjective, when he
suggests to Congress that he stands in different
relation to these eleven States, because of his
election, than they. The House very properly at
once asserted the jurisdiction of Congress over
the whole subject matter, in the resolution in-
troduced from the Committee Reconstruction
and the Senate will undoubtedly do the same
when It reaches vote upon the resolution If
Congress cannot determine whether a State is in
of the Union, whether it has lost its organi-
zation or not, and whether il is entitled = rep
resentaton in It's body, there is certainly no
department of the government. which can decide
the question. The President has no more right
to dictate TO Congress whether tina, body shall
receive senators and representatives, from South
Carolina, than whether it shall receive them from
Col orado. Congress has complete and exclusive
uris of the question in the very nature OF its
organic law. be constitution gives the Presi-
dent no power to thrust States out of the Union
or to take them b ok. to destroy to organize
State governments, to depose or create State
officers, to declare what and who shall or sha II
not constitute State. He is not made the Judge
whether the functions Of State are suspend ed
or destroyed, whether government IS republi-
can not, whether this that State organi-
zaton is the which shoud be recognized.
The Supreme Court have, however, once solemn
ly decided after argument, that Congress is the
body to determine what government in State is
the rig htful one and when i. has decided the
lquestion its decision is binding upon the other
departments of the government. If presidents
are Of any authority, here is precedent which
ought to be decisive.
Although the speeches OF the President had led
all but the most hopeful Republicans to fear that
he was prepared to veto the Freedmen's Bureau
bill, yet the veto fell upon the country like blow.
Republicans who had not lost faith in principles,
and who follow principles not men, were sorely
grieved that the President should put himself in
the way of legislation which seemed absolutely
necessary to make the emancipation of the slaves
Ispythlng more than a name. We had expected
something different of Andrew Johnson who
promised the blacks Of Tennessee that he would
be their Moses to lead them into the land Of as
sured liberty. We looked for different action
from hun who was elected by republican votes,-
| by the same votes which elected the immense
majority of both Houses of Congress, which
passed the bill by THAI a two thirds vote.
We hoped for mething batter from him who
has over aud over again professed the utmost
aversion to treason, the utmost solictude for the
safety and protection of loyal men. We antici-
pated action less gratifying to copperheads from
him who as candidate for Vice President was
assailed by the whole copperhead press of the
1 country as illterate boorsh, drunken tailor
We have been disappointed, and now fear that
instead of having President Johnson's co-opera-
ton In the national duty of redee ming the pledge
II