Middletown transcript., 1868-02-29


pushed to trial in advance of such dec
sion by the Supreme Court, is in violatio
of this principle. 1t is an attempt of on
Of the parties to the controversy to decid
? it for both. 1t assumes that Congress ha
Alright TO pass the law----and that the Pres
dent, in denying that right, commits
crime and incursa penalty-not only III
penalty which the law itself prescriber
but the higher penalty Of removal fror
Office which follows convictions under pro
cess of impeachment. And it makes th
Senate, which is one of the parties to tn
enactment of the law, court for irwin,
| the President for what is an offence onf
4 az the law itself makes it one, and give
\ the Senate the full power also of decidin,
the. eonstitutionality of its own action
suppose the House should impeach tn,
President and the Senate should conyic
him and depose him from Office for havin,
acted in violation of this law; and the Su
preme Court should afterward, in du,
course of its judicial action, decide ths
law to be unconstitutional, what would bt
the position of the President and Senate
before the country? Must the President
be punished for maintaining the authority
of the constitution against an invalid law
Or is the Senate's Judgment of the con-
stitution to override that, of the Supreme
| Court gr,.
In our judgment, the impeachment of
the President is wholly out of place 50
long as the constitutionality of this law is
IN controversy. If the law is unconstitu-
tlonal, and therefore null and void, then
the President has committed no offence
and done nothing to deserve impeachment.
If the law is valid, then he has been guilty
of g high misdemeanor, under the de-
finition Of the law itself, and NAV be ar
raigned, tried and punished therefor. And
neither the House nor the Senate is the
proper tribunal for deciding this question.
1t certainly would be very extraordinary
spectacle to see Congress pass law crea-
ting an offence and prescribing a penalty,
and then acting at once as prosecutor.
judge, jury and executioner upon the Pres
ident for violation of its provisions. Such
proceeding confounds all our ideas of the
distribution of power among different de-
partments OF the government. We do not
believe the Senate will take such action in
the present case. That body will probably
await the action of the Supreme Court in
the case growing out of Mr.. Stanton's
proceedings against General Thomas. IF
the law is sustained by the court, impeacb-
ment may go on. II not, it will probably
be dropped-for we do not think the Sen.
ate Is prepared to set aside that court or
to disregard its decisions altogether.
From The Nec York Horla dem.
The crime for which the President is to
be impeached consists simply in the exer-
else of right which has been enioyed bv
all his predecessors, and belongs to the
executive head of every government in the
world. This right is called in question
by a pretended law, which is in such flo.
grant violation of the constitution, as well
as of all precedents, that this same Stan. |
ton, who is lawyer and has been attor- |
ney-general, advised the President to veto
1T. And now the President is to be i'm
peached in Stanton's interest because he
believes the law to be unconstitutional
and institutes proceedings to bring it to a
Judicial test! If the precedent now set is
to be followed, it will be in the power Of
any future Congress to summarilyi eject
anyfuture President. Congress has merely
to pass some unconstitutional law which
reverses tile whole past practice of the gov
ernmcnt, and when the President takes the
ilrst steps for bringing it to judicicial test,
put him out Of office by articles
Of impeachment. We might as well abol-
lsh the farce Of presidential elections IL
Congress can thus unmake elected Prcsi-
dents at their caprice. e ,'.a
From tie PliSdaelphia Ledger, ind.
The President should be made to under
stand that while it is his duty, as well as
his right, to see that the constitution, az
well ds the laws, be faithfully observed, he
must discharge that duty by due process
of law, openly and honorably, prosecuted
BY regular and orderly proceedings that
will not keep up the constant succession of
excitements that result from sudden strata
gems and semi-clandestine movements to
gain momentary advantages. And Con-
sress should be equally made to understand
hat the people have a deep and abiding
'egard for the constitution and govern.
nent founded by the fathers of the republic,
md that hasty and inconsiderate depar-
ures from their teachings and practice,
md their orderly and conscientious ways
If carrying on the government, are not
avored by any but the ovcr-zealous ad-
lcrents of party. The question of Mr..
'tanton's legal right to hold the office of
of War is now with the courts,
md there it should be allowed to remain
lndisturbed until settled by the Supreme
)ourt, and it ought to be settled without
lelay. The men who counsel the Presi-
lent to turn him out by force, while legal
proceedings are pending, are enemies alike
f the President and of the welfare of soci-
ty. The question of the Presidents mis-
se, or proper and legal exercise of his
ower, is almost certain now to 90 to the
'enate for trial, and there it should be
onducted with judicial propriety, in con-
Drmity with existing laws. The men ,
1ho clamor for special enactments to meet