Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-10-30
The InsentiOn to Overturn tn
3 Constitution i'm Order to Keep Is


Inc ODJecG, openly aVOWeO Dy many O.
the party press that sustain Radicalism, j.;
the impeachment of the President, is to de
pose him from Office during trial. Thi
will be done to give Radicalism the powe
of the Government during the coming ses
sion of Congress, by making BEN. WADE,
the greatrejected of Ohio, President ad in
terin. The SUMMERS, Wilson's, STEVENS,
CHANDLERs, aud other conspirators, have
no hopes of successful impeachment, but
by depriving President JOHNSON Of the
Office to which the Republican party
elected him-that is pronouncing him
guilty before he is tried-they can, by con-
venient delays, so lengthen cut the trial as
to answer the purpose of verdict of
guilty, by prolonging it until after the
next Presidential election, which they in
tend shall result In subversion of the Cow
ernment or Republican triumph.
First, in the programme, Mr. STEVENS
will introduce bill which. it is intended.
shall pass Congress under tho whip and
spur of Congressional caucus, providing
that, when the President is to be tried for
an impeachable offense, and the notice
served upon him that Articles of Impeach-
ment have passed the lower branch of Con-
gress, that moment he is to cease the exer-
else of his official duties, until after the
verdict of the Senate. The argument used
to justify this, is, that as the Constitution
is silent on the subject, Congress has the
power to depose the President. The fol-
lowing extracts from MADIsoN's debates in
the Convention which framed the Consti-
tuition of the United States, however.
completely upset this notion of Mr.. STE
VEINS:
u IN CONVENTION. Il
FRIDAY, Sept. IA, 1857.
Mr.. Rutledge and Mr.. Gouverneur Nor
ris moved THAT persons impeached be sus-
pended from their offices until they be tried
and acquitted"
Mr.. Madison.-"The President is made
too dependent already on the Legislature,
BY the power of one branch to try him H.
consequence OF an impeachment by the
other. This intermediate suspension will
put him in the power of one branch only
They can at any moment in order to make,
way for the function of another who will
be more favorable to their views, vote q f,
temporary removal of the existing magis-
trate." .s-5 -a.s
Mr.. King concurred in the opposition to
the amendment. 2
On the question to agree to it,
Aye-Connecticut, South Carolina, Gcor-
gia-3.
No-New Hampshire, Massachusetts,.
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina-S.
So the proposed amendment was rejected.
Here we see that the proposition to fix
in the Constitution clause providing for
the Presidents suspension while on trial :
on charges of impeachment was made in
the organic convention in 1887, and voted
down by eight States in opposition to |
three in favor of the motion. This vote,
therefore, as the Neo York Herald truth
fully remarks, is substantially the same
thing as a prohibition against suspension
in express terms in the body of the Con-
stitution itself. Congress, for the very
good reasons given by Mr.. MADISON, l.
expressly denied this power of suspen-
sion, and doubtless any attempt to exer-
else itagainst Mr.. JOHNSON, in being carried
up by him to the Supreme Court, will
be pronounced unconstitutional and void
Accordingly Mr.. Stevens would do well tt
abandon this idea of providing by bill for
President Johnson's suspension; for if such
a bill can be passed it will be quashed in
being carried by Mr.. JOHNSON into the Su-
preme Court. In short, if he can not be
got out of the White House by the i'm
peachment, trial and condemnation plainly
set forth in the Constitution, the twot
Houses of Congress can not reach him at
all, and so they had better drop the subject
altogether. But this they will not do, for
:. whom the Gods wish TO destroy they first
make mad" |
Uudeterred by the late terrible over
throw in Ohio, Pennsylvania, California, |
Montana, and their losses in Vermont, |
Maine and other States, they stake their
all upon the hazard of the die, and if they
cannot rule are determined to ruin.= Their
conduct may lead to the solution of the
question how treason should be made
edious, and In the sowing of the wind they
NAV reap the whirlwind for their pains.
DEMOCRATS ought to be satisfied. We
have the U. S. Senator, the Legislature,
beat the Negro amendment, and won near
" ali the money the Republicans staked on
ie general result.-AuglaiSe Democrat. /