The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1886-03-11
CLENELAND'S MESSAGE.
President Cleveland i'll Il Mes sage to the
Senate Refuses to Give Up Ger
tain Papers.
lie Claims That They Are Confidential,
and Says lie Has Redeemed All
Pledges.
THE MESSAGE.


ate the different heads of the departments at
tached to the executive branch of the govern
ment have been pied with various requests and
demands from committees Of the senate. from
members OF such committees, and at last from
the senate itself, requiring the transmission of
reasons for the suspension of certain officials
during the recess OF that body or for the papers
touching the conduct OF such Officials or for
all papers and documents relating to such sus-
pensions, for all documents and papegs
filed i'll such department in relation to the
management and conduct OF the offices held by
such suspended otfc ais. The different terms
from time to time adopted i'll making these
quests and demands, the order III which they
succeeded caca other and the fact that when
made by the senate the resolution for that pur
pose was passed i'll executive session, have led
TO a presumption. the correctness OF which will.
l suppose, be candidly admitted, that from first
to last the Information thus sought and the
papers thus demanded We're desired for use by
the senate and its committees in considering he
propriety OF the suspensions referredto to. Though
these suspensions are my executive acts,
based upon considerations addressed to
alone and for which am
wholly responsible, have had no invitation
from the senats 10 state the position which l
have felt constrained to assume III relation to
the same. or to interpret for myself my acts and
motives in the premises. In this condition of
affairs have foreborne addressing the senate on
the subject, lest might be accused of thrust
ing myself unbldden upon the attention OF that
body. But the report OF the COM
mittee OF the judi ;iary OF the seuate, lately
presented and published, which censures the at
torney general of the United States for his re-
fusal to transmit certain papers relating to a
suspension from office, and which also. ii | cor
rectly interpret II. eyiuces misrepresentation OF
the position of the executive upon the question
of such suspensions, WILL l hope, Justify this
communication.
THE CASE OF DUSTIN
The president refers to the resolution of
the senate calling for the Dustin papers and
the reply of the attorney general thereto,
and says:
TrNnD N In jE1N r,i he ans har
the issue is thus stated by tine committee
Judiciary at the outset OF the report: The i'm
lottant question then, Is whether it is within
the constitutional competence of either house
of congress, to have access TO the official papers
and documents i'll the various public offices of
the United States created by laws enacted by
themselves | do not suppose that the public
offices OF the United States are regulated or con-
troiled in their relations to either house of Con-
gress by the fact that they were created by
laws enacted by them1elves. 1t must be that
these instrumental ties were created for the
benefit of the people and to answer the general
purposes of government under the constitution
and the laws. and that they unencumbered
by any lien in favor of either branch of congress
growing out of their construction, and unem
harrassed 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 1t been the dis
position or the intent ion of the president any
officer id any department OF the executive
branch of the government to withhold from the
senate official documents or papers filed i'll any
of the public offices. While 1t is by no means
conceded that the senate has the right III any
case to review the act OF the executive III re-
moving or suspendng a public officer upon 9TH
cial documents or otherwise, 1t Is considered
that documents and papers of that nature
should, because they official, be freely trans
mitted to the senate upon its demand, trusting
the of the same for proper and legitimate
purposes to the good faith CT that body: and
though no such papers or documents have been
specifically demanded in any of the numerous
requests and demands made :apon the depart
ments Yet often they were found in the
public offices they have beer furnished in an
swer to such applications. The letter of the
attorney general in response to the reso !uton of
the senate in the particular case mentioned in
the commit ees report, was written at my sug-
gestion and by my direction. There had been
NO OFFICIAL PAPERS
or documents filed in his department relating to
the case within the period speclhed IN the reso-
luton. The et ter was intended by its deScrlp-
ton OF the papers and documents remaining IN
the custody of the departments, to convey the
idea that they not official and it was
sumed that the resolution called for information,
papers and documents of the same character
were required by the requests and demands which
preceded 1t. Everything thai had been written
or done in behalf OF the senate from
the beginning pointed to q letter and papers OF
private snd unofficial nature as the objec-s of
search, il they to be found in the depart
ments, and provided they had been presented TO
the executive with a view to their consideration
upon the question of suspension from office.
Against the transmission of such papers and
documents | have interpOsed my advice and
direction. This has not been done, as is sug
gested in the committees report, upon the Rs
sumption my part that the attorney general
or any other head OF department IL the servant
of the president. and is to give or withhold
copies of documents in his office according to
the will OF the executive and not otherwise"
but because regard the papers and documents
withheld and addressed to me, or intended
for my use and action. purely unofficial
and private. Not infrequently confidential,
and having reference to the performance
Of duty exclusively mine. consider them in
tLa - fI,n 1ar>
ment, but as deposited there for my conyen-
fence. remaining still completely under my con-
troll l suppose If desire to take them into
my custody might do SO with entire propriety.
and if | fit to destroy them no one could
complain. The papers and documents that
now the objects of the senate's questions con-
sist Of letters Of representations addressed to
the executive intended for his inspection.
They voluntarily written and presented by
private citizens who are not In the least insti-
gated thereto by any official invitation or at all
subject to official control While some of them
are entitled to executive considerations many OF
them are SO prevalent, or, IN the light of other
facts, so worthless, that they have
NOT BEEN GIVEN THE LEAST WEIGHT
in determining the question to which they
supposed to relate. Are these. simply because
they are preserved, to be considered official
documents and subject to the inspection of the
senate. II not. who is to determine which be-
long to this class? Are the motives and pur-
poses of the senate as they are day by day de-
veloped, such as would be satisfied with my
selection? Am I to submit to these at the risk
of being charged with suspension of officers
upon evidence which was not even considered?
Are these papers to be regarded official because
they have not only been presented but pre-
served in the public offices? The nature and
character remain the same, whether they are
kept in the executive maj sion or deposited in
the departments There Is no mysterious
power of transmutation in departmental GUS
tody, nor is there magic in the underlined
and sacred solemnity Of department files.
If the presence of these papers in the public
offices is a stumbling block in the way of the
nj
removed. The papers and documents which
have been described derive no official character
from any constitutional, statutory or other re-
quirement making them necessary to the per-
Torrance of the official duty of the executive.
1t will not be denied suppose, that the presi-
dent may suspend public officer in the entire
absence of any papers documents to
aid his official judgment and discretion,
and l am quite prepared to avow that the
cases are not few in which suspensions from
office have depended more upon oral representa-
tions made to me by citizens OF known good
repute and by members OF the house of repre-
sentatives and senators of the United States
than upon any letters and documents presented
for examination have not felt justified in
suspecting the veracity, integrity and patriot
ism of the senators or ignoring their representa-
tives because they were not in party utilization
with the majority of their associates; and re-
call few suspensions which bear the approval
of individual members identified politically with
the ajority in the senate. While, therefore,
am constrained to
DENY THE RIGHT OF THE SENATE
to the papers and documents described so far
as the right to the same is based upon the claim
that they In any view OF the subject official,
l am also led unequivocaly to dispute the right
of the senate, by the aid OF any documents what
ever, or In any way save through the Judicial
process of trial or impeachment, to review
verse the act Of the executive, in the suspension
during the recess of the senate Of federal Of
ficials believe the power to remove
pend such officials is vested i'll the president
alone By the constitution, which in express
terms provides that the executive power shall
be vested in the president of the United States of
America" and that he shall take care that
the laws be faithfully executed" The
senate belong to The legislative branch
Of the government. When the constitution by
express provision superadded to its legislative
duties the right to advise and consent to APP
pointments to office. and to sit as a court of i'm
peachment it conferred upon that body all the
control and regulation Of executive actions sup
posed to be necessary for the safety Of the peo-
pie, and this express and special grant of such
extraordinary powers-not in any way related
to or growing out of general senatorial duty, and
in itself a departure from the general plan OF
our government-should he held. under fansil-
lar maxim of construction, to exclude every
other right OF Interference with executive fNnc-