American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1879-05-24
ANOTHER VETO MESSAGE.
The President tetoes the Act to Prohibit
Military Interference al It's Polls.

| Military Interference al et.e Polls.
WASHINGTON, d. c., May 12.-The follow.
ing Is the message Of the President OF The
Of Representatives tnt BIZ e,,ttlea is An ac
to prohibit military interference 1t sles'
tions."
To the House Of Representatives:
After careful consideration of! the bill emit
ut elections" return it to the House of Rep
resentatfves, in which is originated with the
to Its seI e se gose
Representatives on tile 29th Of last month
5i sS as HT., act T5h9as my
ssai teat eHdisP June 50, issS, and Tor re- othel
tions from the statutes of the United states
now in force and by a brief statement of facts
states, that no additional legislation was IS
| necessary. to Prevent tntsrferencee with
the United states. The fact was presented
IN that communication that at the time of the
s OF sas f. q n
conitatus or otherwise, it was m at"satned by
its friends that it would establish q vital ard
| the people protection against the standing
army. The fact was also referred to that
since the passage Of this act Congressional,
State and municipal electiot,s were held
| throughout the Union and that in no instance
has complaint been made of tie presence of
United states soldiers at the polls. Holding
| as do the opinion that any military inter-
ference Whatever at the polls Is contrary 10
| the spirit of our institutions and would tend
| II, destroy the freedom of elections, and sim
eereiy desifing to concur With eensress in az
regret that am forced to the conclusion
that the bill before me is not only dnneces-
| sarS to preeeiit such interference. but is q
dangerous departure from long settled and
| important constitutional principles. The
fale s to shs q No
| dation or coercion should be allowed to con,
troll or influence citizens in the exercise. of
| hair tisrIrt fflv off n
shape of evil disposed persons, or of armed
bodies of militia of a State. or OF the military
should be free from all forcible interference,
and as far az practicable from all appIehen-
either of the Union or of the state
militia, should be present at the polls
duties Of the prdearS civil
There has been and will be no violation of
this rule under orders from me during this
NAL OF the Fight OF the National Government
to employ It's military force ON any day and
necessary to enforce tile Constitution and
laws of the United States. The bill before
M BE- e s s2@s tic: That it shall not be law
full to bring to or emtloy at my place where
State any part of the Army or Navy of the
United States, unless such force be necessary
to repel armed enemies OF the United states
stitution of the United States, and laws made
in pursuance thereof. on application OF the
|
| such force is to be used; and so much of all
laws as is inconsistent herewith is hereby re-
| :. IL will be observed that the bill exempts
| from general prbhibttion against the en-
| plOment OF military forces at polls two spe.
| cific cases. These exceptions recognize the
| soundness of the principle that military
| force may properly and constftutlonaliy De
used at the place of elections when Such use
| rs necessary to enforce the Constitution and
laws; but the excepted cases leave the pro.
hibftion 80 extensive and faf-feaching that
Its adoption will seriously impair the efh.
| cheney of the Executive Department of the
| The first act expressly authorizing the use
| of the military power to execute the laws was
passed almost as early as the organization of
| The Government under the Constitution, and
was approved by President w Washington, May
1882 It is as follows:
ever the laws of the United States shall be
opposed or the execution thereof obstructed
| In any State by combinations too powerful
| 10 be suppressed by the ordinary course of
Judicial proceedings. or by the powers vested
notified to the President of the United States
by an Associate Justice or District Judge. it
ed states to cali forth the militia Of such
State to suppress such combinations, and to
cause the laws to be duly executed; and II
lions may happen, shall refuse or be INSULT
cient to suppress the same, it shall be lawful
United States be not in session, to call forth
and employ such numbers of the militia of
any other states most convenient thereto as
may be necessary. until the expiration OF
thirty days after the commencement OF the
ensuing session."
In 1875 this provision was substantially re-
| enacted in a law which repealed the act OF
1872. In 1907 the following act became the
law by the approval of President Jefferson:
s'That in ali cases of insurrection or obstruc
ton to the laws, either of the Uuited states
It is lawful for the President of the United
States to call forth the militia for the pur.
o, tRe to nV
be lawful tor him to employ for the same
purposes such part of the land or naval force
necessary, having first observed all the pre-
requisites of the law in that respect"
by this act it will be seen that the scope of
the law of 1875 was extended so as to author
lie the National Government to use not on
ly the militia but the Army and Navy of the
United States in causing the laws to be duly
executed. The important provisions OF the
terms from time to time. to adopt it to the
existing emergency, remained in force until
July y s as a ISL Il was re enacted SUBSTANTIALLY
In the same language in which 1t is now found
in the revised statutes, viz:
"SEC. 5,29S. Whenever by reason OF unlaw- |
full distinctions, combinations or assem-
blages of persons in rebellion against the au,
States, it shall become impracticable in the
iud gment of the President to enforce, by the
laws Of the United States within any State or
Territory, it shall be lawful for the President
to call forth the militia OF any or an states
val forces of the United States as he may |
deem necessary to enforce the faithful exc
cution of the laws of the United States, or to |
suppress such rebellion, in whatever state or |
Territory thereof the laws of the United |
ton thereof forcibly obstructed" This an
cient and fundamental law has been In
force from the foundation of the Govern
ment. It is now proposed to abrogate it on
certain days and at certain places.
In my Judgment no fact has been produced
which tends to show that it ought to be re-
pealed or suspended for single hour at any
place in any of the States or Territories OF
the Union. All the teachings of experience
in the course of our history are In favor OF
sustaining its efficiency untmpaired. On ev-
cry occasion when the supremacy OF the
Constitution has been resisted and the per- |
principle of this statute, enacted for the IA
theirs, has enabled the Governments OF the
serve the integrity of the Nation at the most
critical periods of our history.
My predecessors in the executive office have
great principle that President Washington
Suppressed the whisky rebellion in Pennsyl-
vailia in 1894. In 1906 on the same principle,
BY sP the she
ment Of such force, either of the regulars or
OF the militia and by such proceedings OF the
civil authorities as might enable them to
suppress effectually the further progress OF
the enterprise. 1t was under the same au-
thOrity that President Jackson crushed the
notification in South Carolina, and that
President Lincoln issued his cali for troops to
GUS other occasions of less significance,
under probably every administration, ana
certainly under the present, this power has
been usefully exerted to enforce the laws,
without objection by any party in the coun-
try, and almost without attracting public at
tention The great elementary constitution
al principle which was the foundation of the
original statute of 1872, and which has been
its essence in the various forms 1t has as
sumed since its first adoption, is that the
Government of the United States possesses
under the Constitution in full measure the
power of self protection by its own agencies
n in6eDendant state ",