Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1868-02-06

The United States can only act through the
Government, and the clause would mean
precisely the same thing If II read "Thc
Government of the United States shall guar
antee to every State in this Union repub-
lican form of government"
Then, as the Government of the United
States is to execute this guarantee, the
| question arises, what constitutes the Gov
ernment Of the United States? The Presi-
| dent does not constitute the Government;
the Congress does not constitute the Govern
ment; the judiciary does not constitute the
Government; but all three together consti-
tute the Government; and as this guarantee
Is to be executed by the Government of the
United States, 1t follows necessarily that II
must be Legislative act. The President
| could not assume to execute tho guarantee
without assuming that he was the United
States within the meaning of that provision,
| without assuming that he was the Govern
ment of the United States. Congress could
not OF itself assume to execute the guaraIi-
tee without assuming that it was the Gov
erRment of the United States; nor could the
Judiciary without a like assumption. The
act must be the act fthe Government, and,
therefore, II must be a legislative act, a law
passed by Congress, submitted to the Presi-
dent for his approval, and perhaps, in pro-
per case, subject TO be reviewed by the jli-
dietary.
Mr.. President, that this is necessarily the
case from the simple reading of the Consti-
tuition seems to me cannot be for moment
denied. The President, in assuming to ex-
ecute this guarantee himself, is assuming to
be the Government of the United States,
which he clearly is not, but one of its CO.
ordinate branches; and, therefore, as this
guarantee must lie Legislative act, it fol-
lows that the attempt on the part OF the
President to execute the guarantee was
without authority, and that the guarantee
can only be executed in the form of law,
first to be passed by Congress and then to
be submitted to the President for his ap-
proval; and if he does not approve it, then
to be passed over his head by majority of
two-thirds in each House. That law, then
becomes the execution of the guarantee,
and is the act of the Government of the
United States.
MIR. President, this is not an open ques-
tion. send to the Secretary and ask him
TO read part of the decision of the Su-
preme Court of the United States in the case
of Luther vs.. Borden, as reported in Z How
ard.
The Secretary read as follows:
Moreover, the Constitution of the United
States, as far as 1t has provided for an emer-
gency of this kind, and authorized the Gen.
eral Government to interfere in the domes-
tic concerns of State, has treated the sub
ject al political in its nature, and placed the
pow or in tho hands OF that department.
The fourth section of the fourth article of
the Constitution of the United States, pro-
yides that the United States shall guarantee
to every State in the Union republican
form of government, and shall protect each
of them against inyasions; and upon the ap-
pication of the Legislature or of the Exc
cutiyc (when the Legislature cannot be con-
yened) against domestic violence.
''Under this article of the Constitution it
rests with Congress to decide what govern
ment is the established one in Stats. For,
as the United States guarantees to each
State Republican government, Congress
must necessarily decide what government is
established in the State before it can deter
mine whether it is republican or not. And
when the Senators and Representatives of
State are admitted into the councils of the
Union, the authority of the government
under which they are appointed, as well as
its republican character, is recognized by
the proper constitutional authority. And
Its decision is binding upon every other de-
partment of the Government, and could not
be questioned in judicial tribunal. 1t is
true that the contest in this case did not last
long enough to bring the matter to this
issue; and as no Senators or Representa-
tives were elected under the authority of the
government of which Mr. Dorr was the
head, Congress was not called upon to de-
eide the controversy Yet the right to de-
eide is placed there and not in the courts"
Mr.. Morton. In tiiis opinion of the Su-
preme Court of the United States, delivered
many years ago, the right To execute the
guarantee provided for in this clause of the
Constitution is placed in Congress and no.
where else, and therefore the necessary read
ing of the Constitution is confirmed by the
highest judicial authority which we have.
AIr. johnson. Do you read from tho
opinion delivered by the Chief Justice?
Mr.. Morton. Yes, sir; the opinion deiv-
cred by Chief Justice fancy. He decides
that this power is not judicial; that il is one
of the high powers conferred upon Con-
gress that 1t is not subject TO hc reviewed
by the Supreme Court, because it is political
in its nature. 1t is distinct enunciation of
the doctrine that this guarantee is not TO be
exccuted'by the President or by the Supreme
Court, hut by the Congress of the United
States, in the form of law to be passed by
that body and to be submitted to the Presi-
dent for his approval; and should he disap-
prove ii, it may become n law by being
passed by Il two-thirds majority ovor his
head.
Now will call tie attention of my friend
from Wisconsin to some other authority.
AS he has been pleased to refer to a former
speech of mine to show that am not quite
consistent, will refer to a vote given by
~,
On the first Of July, 1864, the Senate hay
ing under consideration, as in Committee of
the Whole, ga bill to guarantee to certain
States whose governments have been usurp-
ed or overlbrown, a republican form of gov
ernment, Mr.. Brown, of Missouri, offered
an amendment to strike out all OF the bill
after the enacting clause, and to insert a
substitute, which will ask the Secretary to
read.
The Secretary read as follows:
That wheH the inhabitants of any State,
have been declared in state of insurrection
against the United States by proclamation
of the President, by force and virtue of the
act entitled "An act further to provide for
the collection of duties on imports, and for
other purposes, approved July l3, 1861, they
shall be, and are hereby declared t. be, in
capable of casting any vote for electors of
frcSiueht OF flCc lrtSlutnt OIL Ine Un1teQ
States, or of electing Senators or Represen-
tatives in Congress until said insurrection in
said State is suppressed or abandoned, and
said inhabitants have returned to their obe-
dience to the Government of the United
States, and until such return to obedience
shall be declared by proclamation of the
President issued by virtue of an act of Con-
gress hereafter to be passed, authorizing the
same.
Mr.. Morton. The honorable senator from
Wisconsin voted for that in Committee of
the Whole and on its final passage. / call
attention to the conclusion of the amend
ment, which declares that they shall be-
"Incapable of casting any vote for cleo
tors of President or Vice President of the
United States or of elccting Senators OF
Representatives in Congress until said in
surrection in said State is suppressed OF
abandoned, and said inhabitants have re-
turned to their obedience TO the Government
of the United States and until such return
and obedience shall be declared by procla-
nation of the President issued by virtue OF
| an act of Congress hereafter to be passed,
authorizing the same"
Recognizing that state of war shall be
regarded as continuing until it shall be de-
clared no longer to exist by the President,
in virtue of an act of Congress to be here
4