The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1881-02-05
The Electoral Joint Resolution.

The Democrats in the House have
abandoned their attempt to pass the
Morgan joint resolution providing for
the proper counting of the Electoral
vote, at least for the time being; but
that it will ultimately be passed by the
present Congress there is no question.
so it is difficult to see what the Repub-
licans have gained by their factious and
uncalled-for opposition. They have
wasted one week of time and placed
themselves on record as opposing any
plan for settling the dispute about how
the Electoral vote ought to be counted,
but that is all. The Democrats had not
a quorum in themselves and so could
not force a vote over the heads of the
filibusters. but when all the members
are present they willhave quorum, and
can pass the resolution whatever the
minority may do to prevent il. Until
such time should arrive the Repub-
licans. by filibustering, would be able
to prevent the passage of the measure.
and therefore the Democrats acted
wisely in laying it aside until the arrival
of their tardy members will give
them strength enough to put the
resolution through. 1t is not neces-
sary to spend further time in the dis
cussion of measure that Is so clearly
right and proper and which has been
discussed at too great length already.
The position that the President OF the
Senate is vested with absolute, arbi-
trary power over the Electoral returns,
and the counting of them, and that there
is no authority anywhere which tran
scends his, or which can question his
official acts, is utterly monstrous, and
the Democratic majority in the House
will display pitiable weakness If it
ever allows the Electoral count to go
forward under such an intolerable
usurpation of authority as is claimed for
the Vice-President of the United States.
If consistency were thing which. ever
troubled Republican politician in the
least; or if it were not the cardinal fea-
ture of Republican policy and the fun
damental idea of their political faith,
that partisan advantage is the thing
to be aimed at regardless alike of law,
Justice, precedent or common sense; it
would be difficult to understand how
the Republican party can now take its
stand upon a proposition that four
years ago its ablest statesmen utterly
repudiated and condemned as thing
altogether abominable. During the
electoral dispute in Congress, four years
ago, this very same question was agi-
tated and Senators Conkling, Edmunds,
Carpenter and others, the ablest Con-
stitutional lawyers in the party and in
the country. declared that the claim
made for the Vice-President that he
should count the vote was preposterous,
and not for moment to be thought of.
They spoke against the proposition in
the strongest terms and voted against
it. Yet, in the face of this, we have
such alleged leaders of the Republican
party as Conger and Keller maintaining
as sound the very principle which these
able Constitutional lawyers of their own
party then condemned. And the Re-
publican party now appears as defend.
ing procedure which, four years ago
it pronounced unconstitutional and
revolutionary, and its organs exhori
the minority in Congress to filibustel
ell winter, if necessary, in support of 8
proposition which heretofore has beer
pronounced by Republican leaders as
dangerous, unconstitutional and un
sound. Such are the inconsistencies Of
Republicanism.- Cleveland Pdindealer