Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1886-03-11

the laws be faithfully executed" The SessAs
6eiocs. to the legislative branch Of
tne Government. When the constttu-
added to its legislative duties the
right to advise and consent to appointments
TO once and to sit as j court Of impeachment
| IT conferred upon that body all the control
| and regulation OF executive action supposed
to be necessary for the safety OF the people
and this express and special graut 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 be held I'M
der a familiar maxim OF the constitution to
exclude every other right of interference
with executive functions
ORIGIN OF THE PRESIDENTS RieHI5.
In the nrst Congress which Ssssmbled after
many who aided il is preparation, a iegsla-
tive constrDctr1 was given TO that instru-
nent IN ..Ich the independence OF the. cx-
ccutlSe In the matter of removals from office
VS. fully sustained think it will be found
| that in the subsequent d scussion Of this
| question there was generally IL not at ali
times proposition pending to in some way.
ton, which furnishes oyiGc,ice that to limit
such power it vas SUPPOSED to be necessary
to supplement the constitution by such egis.
lation.
The first enactment Of thi. description was
I! passed under process of partisanship and
political bitterness. which eliminated in the
President impeachment This law provided
! that the Federal officers to which it applied
could only be suspended Curing the recess of
| the Senate When Shown By evidence satisfac-
tory to the President to he guilty of miscon-
Duct IN Office or crime or when incapable or
dlsqualifed to perform their duties and that
within twenty days after the next meeting
| OF the Senate it should be the duty OF the
| President TO report TO the Senste such sus-
| pension with the evidence and reason for his
| action in the case" This statute passed ia
| 1867 when Congress was Overwhelmingly and
! bitterly opposed politically 10 the President,
regarded
| then it was thought necessary by Congress
determined upon the snhiisation of the
executive to the legislative will, to furnish
| itself law for that purpose instead OF at.
tempting to reach the object intende. BY an
| Invocation or any pretrCdt.. const tutiOnal
right. The law witch thus found its way TO
our statute pooh was in plain terms and :ts
intent needed no avowaL II valid ard now
IN operation 1t would justify the present
course 81 the Senate and command the Obe-
| dIcnce OF the executive to its demand. 1t
| may, however, be remarked in passing that
under the law the Pres dent hH. the privilege
| of presenting to the body which assumed
to review hiscSecntive acts hi. reasons there
| fer instead of being excluded from cxplana.
ton or judged by papers found in the de.
| partments.
RsPEALING STATUTES.
| Two years after the law OF 1861 was passed,
and within less than five weeks after the in
auguraton OF a Pres dent in political accord
| with both branches of Congress, the sections
of the act regulating suspensions from Office
during the recess of the Senate were ent rely
| repeated and in their places were substituted
provisions which, instead of limiting the
causes OF suspension to misconduct. crime,
disability or disqualification, expressly pera
mitted such suspension hy the President III
his discretion, and completely abandoned the
+, requirement obi cling him 10 report to the
| Senate 'the evidence and reasons" for his
actions. With these notifications and with
| all branches OF the Government in political
| harmony, and in the absence OF partisan in
centives to captious distractions the Ia W as il
| less destructive of Executive d secretion.
And yet the great General-the patriotic cti.
zen-wbo on March 4, 1863, assumed the du-
| ties Of chief Executive, and for whose freer
administration of his high Office the most
| hateful restraints of the law of 1857 were on
| the fifth day of April, 1863 removed, mindful
| of his obligation to defend and protect every
| prerOgative of h great trust, and appre-
hensive of the injury Threatened the public
| service in the continued operation of these
statutes even in their modified form, In his
| first passage to Congress advised their repeal
| and set forth their unconstitutional charac.
ter and burtful tendency.
am unable to state whether or not this
recommendation for repeal of these laws
has been since repeated. If it has not the
reason can probably be found in the eXpe-
rience which demonst rated the fact that the
necesSaries of the political situation but
rarely developed their vicious character.
And SO it happens that after an existence OF
nearly twenty years of almost innocuous
desuetude these laws are brought forth. APP.
parently the repealed as well as the unre.
pealed, and put in the way of an Executive
who is willing, if permitted, to attempt an
Improvement in the methods of administers.
ton.
The constitutionaity of these laws is by no
means admitted. But why should the pro.
visions of the repealed law, which required
specific cause for suspension and report to
the Senate of 'evidence and reasons" be
now, in effect, applied to the present execu.
tive instead of the law. afterward passed and
unrepcaled, which distinctly permits sus-
President discretion"
and carefully omts the requ rement that
"evidence and reasons for his actions in the
case" shall be reported TO the Senate.
SENATORIAL ASSUMPTION.
The requests and demands which by the
score have for nearly three months been
presented to the different departments of
the Government, whatever may be their
form, have but one compleXion-they assume
the right OF the Senate to sit in Judgment
upon the exercise of my exclusive discretion
and executive function, for which l am
solely responsible to the people from whom
Iahave SO lately received the sacred trust of
office. My oath to support and defend the
constitution, my duty to the people who
have chosen me to exercise the powers OF
their great Office and not to relinquish my
duty to the chief magistracy. which must
preserve unimpaired in all its dignity End
vigOr, compel me to refuse to comply with
these demands.
HTO the end that tho service may be i'm
proved, the Senate is invited to the fulles
scrutiny of the persons submitted to them
for public office, in recognition of the cOnsti.
tutiOnal power of that body to advise and
consent to their appo. ntment, and shall con.
tnue. as have thus far done, TO furnish ut
the request of the confirming body all the in.
formation | possess touching the fitness of
the nominees placed before them for thcir
action both when they are proposed to fill
vacancies and to take place OF suspended
officials, and upon the refusal to confirm ]
shall not assume the right to ask the reasons
for the action of the Senate or question lite
determ nation.
can not think that any thing more is re.
qured to secure orthy incumbents in public
flee than a careful and independent dis
charge of our respective duties within their
well defined limits. Though the prOpriety OF
suspensions might be better assured il the
action of the Pres dent was subject to review
by the Senate, yet if the constitution and the
laws have placed this responsibility upon the
executive branch of the Government it
should not be divided nor the discretion
which il involved relinquished
PLEDGES REDEEMED.
1t has been claimed that the present eyecu.
tive having pledged himself not to remove
officials except for cause the fate of their
part of suspended official as Injuries his
character and reputation, and therefore the
Senate should review the case for his vindi-
cation. l have said that certain officials
should not. in my opinion, be removed
during the continuance of the term for
which they were appointed solely for
those in political utilization with the ap
pointing power, and this declaration
was immediately followed by a description
of official partisanship which ought not to
entite those in whom it was exhibited TO
consideration. 1t is not apparent how an
adherence to the course thus announced
carried with it the consequences described.
Ii in any degree the suggestion is worthy Of
consideration it is to be hoped that there
may be defense against unjust suspension in
the justice Of the executive.
Every pledge which have made by which
| have placed n limitation upon my exercise
OF executive power has been faithfully re.
deemed. OF course the pretense is not put
forth that no mistakes have been committed,
but not a suspension has been made except
il appeared TO NV satisfaction that the pub