Weekly commercial herald., 1886-03-05
WAR ON THE PRESIDENT.
A Message to the Senarors=-Mr,
EIeve'aapboS SlvS ba,5+ SIue " 3 tne Coin1tro-


A Message. to the Senarors--Mr.
CleVeland'S Side to the Contro-
Versy About to be Made Public.
Special to the New Orleans Pieayune.
WAsHIN GTON, Feb. 28-It was stat.
ed in my dispatch of Feb. 19 to the
Picayune that the President WAS in.
dignant at the attempt to degrade the
Executive Office, and that, at the prop.
er time, he would make his own views
known in the most emphatic manner
! hear that the message is prepared
by the President himself. and that none
of the members of the Cabinet have
aided in its preparation.
1t is also stated that the several
Democratic Senators, who have been
to see the President on the subject of
his communication, have failed to elicit
from him any account of what the
\ document will contain.
1t is pretty certain that the Presi-
y dent will in no degree admit the con-
stitutionality Of the tenure of Office
law.
There is some discussionl among
Democratic Congressman as to whether
it would be eXpedient for the Presi-
dent to send in a message at this stage
of the proceedings. The explanation
of his taking such step at this time,
that appears the most plausible, is that
the President probably regards it a
matter Of honor to refuse to stand idly
by and allow the war to be made upon
the members Of his Cabinet for acts
which he himself directed.
1t is probable. therefore, that the
message will begin by reciting the steps
already taken by the committees of
the Senate and by the Senate itself to
obtain information, and, particularly,
the call made upon Attorney General
Garland for the papers relative to the
suspension Of Geo. M. Duskin, of Ala
bama, and the President will take oc-
casion to say that the act of the At
torney General in declining to submit
=, the papers demanded by the Senate
was performed by his expressed direc.
tion.
The resolutions already submitted
which criticise the Attorney General
may or may not be referred to. But
the President will probably 60 on to
make an extended discussion as to his
right to make removals or suspensions
without assigning reasons therefor and
also his right to deem all such papers
as may relate to suspensions as purely
confidential.
Lam now informed by good author
ity that the President has carefully
prepared a message on the subject of
the issued raised with the Executive
: by the Senate Republican caucus, and
in which he will assert his views OF
the duties and relations of the Execu-
tive and the Senate in this matter, and
that this document will probably be
ready for presentation to the Senate at
an early hour tomorrow.
The determination of the President
to make the battle pitched between
himself and the Senate, instead of al
lowing subordinates to bear the brunt
eof it, may explain the fact that he did
not consult the Attorney General as to
the preparation of the document.
There is no doubt that the message
will produce tremendous sensation
when it is sent in.
If the message should precede the
action of the Senate on the Edmunds
resolutions and Mr.. Pugh's minority
it will probably be referred at once to
the Committee on the Judiciary, and it
would be proper that it should be
printed and considered before the
Senate proceeds to the consideration OF
the general issue.
The Democrats will insist upon this
view of the matter, and the Republi
cans will hardly venture to contest it
This may possibly involve some delay
of the grand discussion which other
wise is expected to take place to-mor'
row.
The message, under all the circum
stances, will be an event bearing
striking resemblance to the celebrated
protest which President Jackson sem
in when he was visited by the censurt
of the Senate.
- The debate on the whole subject
Z, will probably be very abl9. Mr.. Ken
ma is ready with a strong speech IL
support of the position of the Presi-
dent. and Senators Pugh, Jackson
Gibson, Blackburn, and other Demo
a
Gratis will probably speak on the same
side. -,
The Republican debaters will be
Messrs. Edmunds, Hoar' sherman In
gals, Wilson, of Iowa, and Others
The constitutionality of the tenure
of office law will be discussed. Mr
Hoar, and probably other Republican
senators, admit that this law is uncon
stitutional. -
Y.,,,oD- Fab O7 1896