Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-05-08
ANOTHER VETO.

The president has vetoed the i'm
mediate deficiency bill. In stating
the reasons for his veto, he has
taken so despotic and unprecedented
a position that these reasons call
more urgently for comment. than
the merits of the measure he vetoed.
He rests his veto, not upon the
merits or dement's of any clause in
the bill, but on the general point
that it contains permanent and gen.
eral legislation in addition to the
appropriation it DEGREES. In other
words, it contains what is techni-
cally called rider.
AS the one purpose to which we
have set ourselves is the vindication
of the constitution against the man
ifeSt tendencies to empire, we pro-
pose to dwell more upon this posi-
ton of the presidents than upon
the merits of the bill which he
vetOes.
Mr.. Hayes does not pretend that
the practice of adding riders to APP
preparation bills is unconstitutional.
He cannot help knowing that the
practice has existed as long as the
constitution has existed; that his
own party within the last fifteen
years has added many times more
riders to appropriation bills than
the democratic party in the whole
course of its existence; that he him
self has in the present session APP
proved many appropriation bills
with riders to them; that the SUI
preme court, which is, under the
constitution, the one Judge of the
cOnstitutiOnality of laws, has never
thrown scintilla of doubt upon
that of such legislation; but he
simply asserts, on his own individ-
ual responsibility, that the practice
has become inexpedient; that it is
now a good time for it to stop, and
stop it shall. There is a very pretty
emperor for US without waiting for
the man on horseback.
One man decides, not upon one
particular law, but upon the very
method of passing laws, and decides
without any constitutional enact
ment that a particular method which
he dislikes shall be abrOgated. Thus
the imperial despot sets himself
above congress, above the constitu-
ton, above the supreme court, and
DEGREES of his own autocratic will
how congress shall legislate. He
does at his own supreme pleasure
what nothing but an alteration of
the constitution ought to be suffi-
cient to effect.
Were we premature in contending
for the constitution against the en-
pire?
And now what is this rider which
it required such an unprecedented
assertion of autocratic authority to
defeat? The appropriation was for
the payment of supervisors of elec-
tions and the assistant supervisors
and deputy marshals appointed by
them. The rider was not irrelevant
it simply provided that the officers
so paid should be so appointed as to
in some measure deprive them of
their partisan character; that they
should be appointed by the federal
court and in equal numbers from
both parties.
So the whole procedure of con-
gressional legislationais to be altered
at the dietatiOn of one man i'm order .
that the party in power may have a
strictly partisan body Of election
agents round the poll, paid by the
public for overriding the vote of the
people and arresting men who may
be known as democratic voters.
The despOtIo character of the
veto becomes complete when it is
stated for what purpose it Is in
yOked,