The States and Union. [volume] (Ashland, Ohio) 1868-1872, 1871-08-23
SAN DOMINGO JOB.
Carl Shurz on Grants Usurpation
of the War Power.

Inc 0aQlcdi party VI OHio, aCCOiu-
ing to the State Journal, in the platform
adopted by the office holders Conven-
ton, neither took a position "for or
against" Mr.. Grants San Domingo
Job. This is virtually an Endorsement
OF it. for not to oppose in this case is
to acquiesce.
Carl Shurz's reference to the pro-
posed annexation of the island by the
President and his usurpation of the
war power, is particularly interesting
reading, taken in connection with the
platform of the Ohio office holders
In his Chicago speech, after referring
to his opposition to the Ku-Klux bill,
Senator Schurz said:
TIE SAN DOMINGO QUESTION,
1t was my lot, also, to oppose IN
other VIOLATION of power for which
there was not even the excuse of ne
cessity. I mean the usurpation of the
power to declare war on the part of
the President in the San Domingo
matter. I do not propose to speak
here of the policy Of incorporating
tropical countries to our Union. One
word is sufficient to explain my stand
point. The annexation of San Do
mingo would undoubtedly, in a very
short time, lead to the annexation of
all the tropics north of the Isthmus of
Darien. This would cause q mixed
population Of S~paniards, Indian, and
African, who have nothing in common
with us, and would give US a territory
in n latitude uhnra ~ cyetnno nF Ia INnT
is not yet in vogue, and would neces-
sarily involve us in many difficulties,
and lead to much military interior
ence and corruption of all sorts. We
would, in addition to the South we
now have, and which gives u SO much
trouble, have acquired another South
and under even more favorable
terms. Our power, development and
destiny are limited to the temperate
zone, and here must remain the center
of gravity. The acquisition of the
tropics would be like the acquisition
of q handsome dress infested with the
small pox.
1 propose only to touch the constitu-
tional question, however. In the sum-
mer of 1869, President Grant entered
into two negotiations with Baez, Chief
of the Republic of San Domingo, of
which the acquisition of the republic
was the object. In this measure, no
doubt, the President had the Constitu-
ton on his side; but mono of these
negotiations we're of any effect until
they had been ratified by the Senate.
Now, that it was given out that the
republic of Sandomingo was in danger
of invasion from the neighboring re-
public of Hayti, and that Baez, who
reached his place of power in San DO
mingo, was in danger of being turned
out through a revolutionary movement
of the people.
Such n revolution would have Sc
r%iously interfered with the plans Of
President Grant. What did he do ?
He sent United States men of var to
San Domingo, under orders to protect
Baez by force of arms against all enc
mics that might attack him, whether
from without or within. In other
words, the President ordered the fleet
of the United States in a given case,
which he assumed beforehand, to be-
gin operations of war against a people
with whom the people of the United
States are at peace and he did this in
the face of the Constitution, which
declares Congress, not the President,
to be the legitimate ~war-making power.
Senator Sumner and myself took eX-
ception to the act as an usurpation of
one of the chief prerogatives of Con-
gress. Indeed, the more 1 studied
this question in all its bearings, the
more deeply was 1 convinced that
through this act the Constitution was
being violated in one of its fundamen-
tai principles; and that nc precedent
could be found in the history of the
United States to Excuse this act of
usurpation. Let US look at this ques-
ton fairly. The power to declare war
is by virtue of the Constitution, lodged
with Congress, and not with the Pres
ident and for the very plain reason
that the peace of the land should not
be made the plaything of a single in
dividual /; that war, with all its sacri-
fees and miseries, should not be bro't
upon the people except through a de.
cree of the representatives of the peo-
pie. If the Constitution, when it de-
clares that Congress shall have power
to declare war, means anything-it it
is not a simple farce-then it means
that the President shall not have the
power to declare war, except Congress
expressly empowers him to do so. 1t
is self evident that if a foreign enemy
should unexpectedly invade this coun-
try should our men of war be at
tackled upon the open sea, the right of
self-defense would demand retaliation.
But when no invasion is in question
and our fleet has not been subjected
to an enemy's fire, there can be no
talk about self-defense !; and if, under
these circumstances, the President
takes measures of war in order to
take an active part in the affair Of 9TH
er nations with whom the United States
are at peace, and all this without au-
thority from Congress, then he as
sumes a power which the Constitution
expressly prohibits him from exercis-
ing, a power which eve no monarch
of the old world possesses, MT even
the Emperor of Germany, for even
that potentate, according to the new
constitution of the empire, can not
declare war without the consent Of the
Reiahstag,
Should we concede to the President
this right, then, indeed, is the peace,
the prosperity, and the happiness of
the American people in the hands of a
single man; then are the United States
in so far, a monarchy, and, in this re-
spect, one more absolute than the
mightiest in Europe, and this power