Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1870-12-28
Gbe FREEMAN
MONTPELIER, VI:
WEDNESDAY, DEC. %, 1870.
Party Discipline.

entitled to any Independent judgment and
action On measures which a Republican Pres
idenU, for any reason, sees fit to recommend
TO che favorable action OF Congress; and IN
coancction with this question is another,
viz whether criticism Of the course pur-
sued by the President is 20 be tolerated in
any member OF the party. 1t Is, of course,
unfortunate that these questions shou Id
arise it is more unfortunate that there
should be any occasion to raise them but
1t now hardly seems possible that the Re
publicans of the country must net speak
their minds freely upon them.
The debate last week in the Senate on the
San Domingo annexation scheme has dis
closed two things. First, it showed that
Senator Sumner and other Republican Sen
stOrs are conscientiously opposed to the an
nexation of that negro republic. Secondly,
it became evident that the President, and
he men who have now the car of the Pres
ident, determined to use the party
machinery to put into the background Mr..
Sumner, and any other Republican who
dares to criticise the Presidents course in
respect to San Domingo. Senator Morton
and Senator Conkling, each the especial
champions Of the Presidents policy in that
E---A--s---s ---A---- -.
neE must be removed from the Craftsmanship
Of the Committee on Foreign Relations, and
that committee must be reconstructed in the
interest of this scheme of annexation
Whether this high-handed measure in sup
port Of particular policy will be carried
out, remains to be seen but it is certainly
not too soon to consider not so much its con-
sequences, as its meaning
The simple meaning Of this proposition is
that Republican President is, 50 far as the
right of speech and action on the part of
Republicans in Congress is concerned. the
dictator OF the policy Of the party When
ever the President presses a scheme, however
little it may Commend itself to the honest
Judgment of the Republican chairman of a
commiLtee Of Congress, if that chairman
earnestly and seriously opposes it, his COM
mIttee Is to be reconstructed. The machin-
cry Of the party is always to be made to
P port the President in all his projects.
Irrespective Of tie present quarrel, we re-
gad s4ch an attempt not only dangerous to
the Republican party, but as subversive of
Republican principles. If one man, because
b happens TO be President, is in our Repub
lie s. la to be vested with inialliblity that
We ry man is to be, practically, excommuni.
Gated from the party who does not conform
to his wishes, we might as well 90 over to
Rome at once. The right of private iudg-
ment aud the right OF free and full discus
sion of all questions Of public concern, are
Inalienable rights in a free government:
and the Republican party, which has been
IN an especial manner the champion Of these
rights, will be false to its whole history, and
to every distinctive principle which it has
ever advocated, when it attempts by party
machinery to subordinate this right to the
necessities OF any supposed party exigency, I
or to the policy Of any mere man, however
high in Off ;iaI position he may be- And it
viii not only be false to its history when it
f6gpls- to compel a-stzieAAess-srin a !
16tlaI scheme, OF to silence all Repub- (
lican directors, but it Will strike danger .
Gus, If not fatal blow against all freedom .
of opinion under republican institutions. \
Democrats, we know, take without question .
the word of command from those whom they
choose to recognize their leaders but we .
had supposed Republicanism was something
better than mere blind following. for GER
tain party purposes, Of any leadership, /
whether it be that of Mr. Sumner or of
President Grant. We are now confronted
with the proposition, however, to adopt, as
a measure OF party policy, this most objec- .
tionable feature of Democratic party drill .
and discipline and we do not hesitate to .
denounce the proposition as one wholly in
defensible in itself, and most mischievous /
in its effect not only upon the party, but /
upon any honest administration of public
affairs.
The President-we speak now of the Office
and not of President GRANTS not, in any
just sense, in respect to domestic affairs,
anything but an executive officer In respect
to foreign affiirs-that is, our relations with
other governmcnts-hc declares the policy
of the government, and in the recess Of
Congress is, not seldom perhaps, obliged to
act upon his own judgment, with such ad-
vice as be may be able, or may choose to
command. lie cannot declare war-that is
reserved for Congress. lie cannot conclude
peace-in that work the Senate act Jointly I
with him. Ia making treaties of any sort
he can neither actually nor morally bind
either the action or the judgment of the
Senate; and, Of course, he has no more
right to control the Judgment or the action
of them who voted for him, than of those
who voted against him. lie may make rec
concentrations, but such recon mendations /
should have no weight to prejudice the iudg- |
ment favorably or adversely Of those who
are to act upon them, irrespective of the
merits of the propositions submitted. l /
be uses his high Office, its power, or its pat
ronage, to cJerce the Jud sment of any man,
he does violence to that right of free judg-
ment and free action which not only belongs
to every citizen of the republic, but without
which republican institutions, government by
the consent of the governed, are deIusion
ami a sham. He is not as President polit-
ical dictator-he has no authority as Presi
d"nt to write party platforms or dictate
party pOlicy-he has no exemption as Presl-
dent from the honest criticism of anybody.
Ii he iavOrs the annexation Of foreign terri
tory, he mas, of course, right to. say so,
and TO say officially, and his opinions are
entitled to the same weight on that subject
as the opinions of any other person equally
well informed, and of equally good judg
ment-no IN re and no less
Such we believe to be the position which