The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1886-03-02

described, So far as the right to the
same is based upon the claim that they
are, in any view of the subject. official
am also led unequivocally to dispute
the right of the Senate, Dy aid of any
documents, VIII atever, or in any way
save through The judicial process of
trial or Impeachment, to review or re-
wise an act of the executive in the sus-
pension during the recess of the
Senate, of Federal officials. |
believe the power to remove
or suspend such officials is vested in the
President alone, by the Constitution.
which in express terms provides that
1.-The executive power shall be vested in
America" and that she shall take care
that the laws be faithfully executed"
The Senate belongs to the Legislative
branch of the government. When tie
Constitution, by express provision,
superadded to its legislative duties the
right to advise and consent to the ap-
pointment to office and to sit as
court of impeachment, it conferred
upon that body all the control and
regulation of the executive action sup
p Dsed TO be necessary for the
safety If the people and this express
and special grant of such extra
ordinary powers is not in any
way related to or growing out
of genel al senatorial dufy, and in itself,
departure from the general plan of
our.goyernment. sho1id be held. under
the familiar maxim III - of construction,
to exclude every other right of inter
ference with the executive functions.
In the first Congress which assemble
after the adoption of the Constitution,
comprising many who aided in its
preparation, legislative construction
was given to that instrument in which
the independence of the Executive in
fully sustained.
The President refers to the resolution
of the Senate, calling for the Dustin
papers and the reply of the Attorney
General thereto and says upon this
resolution and the answer thereto: The
issue is thus stated by the committee
on judiciary at the outset of the report.
The important question. then, is
whether it is within the constitutional
competence of eitheIIHouse of Congress
to have access to the official papers and
documents in the various public places
of the United States, created by laws
enacted by themselves. l do not sup
pose that "the public officers OF the
United States are regulated or con-
trolled in their relations to either House
of Congress by the fact that they
were united by laws enacted by them
selves" 1t must be that those instru-
mentations were created for the benefit
OF the people and to answer the gen raj
purposes of government under the Con-
stitution and the laws, and that they are
unencumbered by any lien in favor of
| ether branch of Congress growing out
of their Constitution and unembarassed
by any obligation to the Senate as the
price of their creation. The complaint
of the committee, that access to official
papers in the public Office is denied the
Senate, Is met by the statement that at
no time has it been the disposition or
intention of the President or any de-
partment of the executive branch OF
government to withhold from the
Senate official documents or papers filed
in any of the public offices, while it is
by no means conceded that the Senate
has a right in any case to review the
act of the Executive in. removing, or sus
pending, public officers upon official
documents or otherwise. 1t Is con-
sidered that the documents and papers
of that nature should, because they are
official, be freely transmitted to the
Senate upon its demand, trusting the
use of the same, for proper and legiti
mate purposes, to the good faith of thai
body, and though no such papers or
documents have been specifically de-
handed in any of the numerous re
quests and demands made upon the de-
partments,. vet as often as they were
found in public offices, they have been
furnished in answer to such appli
cations. The letter OF the Attorney-Gen
eral is a response to the resolution:
of the Senate in the particular cast
mentioned in the committee s report anC
was written at my suggestion and by
my dictation. There have been NJ
official papers CT d)IH nents filed in hi:
department. relating TO the case within
the period specified in the resolution
The letter was intended, by its descrip
ton of the papers and documents re
naming in the custody of the depart
ment, to convey the idea that they
/ were not official, and it was assumed
} that the resolution called for informa
ton papers and documents of the sam
character as were required by the re
[ quests and demands which pre-
/ ceded it. Everything that hat
) been written or done on behal
: of the Senate from the beginnin!
pointed to all letters ana papers OF
i private and unofficial nature as object
j OF speech if they were to be found in tn
e departments, and provided they ha'
t been presented to the Executive with
= view to their contradiction upon tn,
S question of suspension from Office
= Against the transmission of such paper:
i and documents l have interposed m,
/ advice and directions. This has no
: been done, as is suggested in the com
f mittee's report, upon:the assumption
= on my part, that the Attorney-G General
or any other head of department, 81
{ a servant of the President, who is t
D give or withhold copies of the docu
e ments in his Office according to the vii
}, of the Executive and not otherwise,
= but because 1 regarded the papers an
: documents withheld and addressed I
j. me or intended for my use an
: action, as purely unofficial an
prIvate-notin frequentl confidential
t and having reference to the Performance
C of duty exclusively mine, 1 conside
= then in no proper sense as upon tn
i files of the department, but as deposite
n there for my convenience, remainin
e still completely under my control.
e suppose, if l desired to take them int
= my custody l might do so with entir