National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1886-02-09

the nominee, but when we go behind that
and ask for information as TO suspended
officer the entire discretion Is vested in the
President. would like to ask the sena-
tor, as a lawyer, whether there Is any court
In this country, from the Supreme Court
down, that can control the discretion Of a
trustee, however humble trustee he may
beY
Mr.. Sherman. Is not that an evasion Of
the whole CONTROVERSY We do not claim |
to exercise any power whatever over the |
discretion Of the President. We admit, |
even, that we do not ask for his reasons, |
but we have the power TO control our own |
discretion, and we have a right to all the |
information that we can get from the ex-
ecutive department to enlghten us.
Nobody proposes to control the exercise |
of the Presidents discretion; nobody. lie |
is as independent as we are. But he must
not control our discretion. He must not |
prevent us from having the same sources
of information that he has. lie makes the
nomination. Why did he make that NOM
nation? Was the old incumbent an unfit
man, o corrupt man, thief, defaulter, or
the like Our discretion must be enlight-
ened by all the information that the Presi-
dent has. / say, therefore, that we have
the right to call for that information. At
the same time we should be, to the Presl-
dent, always courteous, and II he should
give any reason for Withholding paper,
for example, because IL was marked soon
fldential," l should not object to that. II
there are papers not meant for the public eye,
and he should choose to withhold them, as
n matter Of confidence, would say that that
was probably case for the exercise Of dis
erection. II he should say, 81 do not care
TO talk about that-that came to me in con-
iidence," that is one thing; but when he
says that papers upon which he acts, con-
talning charges made boldly and openly,
nd pnntrnlln1
conduct in making an appointment
papers on the public fle-he has no
right to withhold those papers merely be-
cause they came to him about an executive
matter. lie ought to give them to us, UNI
less they are In the nature Of a secret-con
ndential papers coming to him, privately;
but they ought not to be filed; they ought
not to be there to poison the fame Of a man
or to affect his family in future time. If
they are to be seen by us--and they ought,
possibly, to be seen by him-they ought to be
put In the waste basket without action.
That is what always do with anonymous
papers that come to me.
Mr.. Pugh claimed that discussion of the
Presidents discretion was irrelevant to the
Lustis resolution, and then proceeded to
give his views Of the Presidents discretion
airy powers.
Mr.. Sherman. The senator has not stated
anything that was not contained in his
resolution. The senator from Alabama
was a member Of the House many years ago.
lie will remember that, time and time
again, we Investigated the administrations
OF Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan.
We called before rs all the papers, secret
and public, in regard to that administra-
ton, and they were never denied to us-by
the last two Democratic Presidents. They
never contended that they could withhold
one paper and give another. On the con-
frarv In nhnlinnap tn 1aw tbn Anprntaru nf
the Navy sent to the House of Representa-
tives private letter Of James Buchanan,
which entered into the public records, and
was commented upon and used. The idea
of distinction between papers, public and
| private, never occurred until during the
present administration.
Why, Mr.. President, the law is plain and
mandatory. happened to hold the office
of Secretary Of the Treasury at one time,
| and was brought before both houses Of
| Congress-thc Senate and House of Rep
rcsentatives-when they called on me for
| papers in a certain controverted case, and
! will not refer to it at any length, because
| II was in executive session. They not only
called on me for the papers, but they called
on me to come in person, to explain the
papers, and to give reasons why and where
fore. never conceived that l had a right,
as an executive officer, to put myself on my
dignity and say, 81 will show you such
papers as will do me no harm, and will
keep back the others.n They say / was
reckless sometimes, but l never was so
reckless as that. The right of each house,
or Of any member of Congress, to examine
such papers has been always conceded by
the executive branch of the government.
Mr.. Pugh. Have you the right to make
this call on the President, for such informa-
ton, to enable the Senate to review his
action in making a removal?
| Mr. Sherman. What RIGHT has he 70 saw
for what purpose we shall use papers? II
we have the right to use those papers at all
we have the right to use them for all they
are worth. Is the President to have the
right to say "You shall use those papers
for one purpose and not for another"
There is no such distinction. If the papers
are on the public file we have the right to
see them. They may be material or useful
have myself brought down to this Senate
chamber great piles Of papers and handed
them to different committees. And as Q
member of these committees | have called
hundred times for papers from the pub
lie files of different departments of the gov
eminent, and they were sent and handed
over to me and received by me as a public
trustee, as much bound to take care Of then
and treat them properly as the head Of any
department Of the government.
Mr.. Pugh. Does the senator claim fol
this body the right to review the action o.
the GreSlucnJ Ill making fetnOVulBI
Mr.. Sherman. 1t is not necessary to go
into that, but say so without question
because 1t is the law, and l believe the law
was constitutional when 1t was passed. Lei
us go little farther. Take the law for thu
Treasury Department. The law-makins
power said that the Secretary Of the Treas
ury should be responsible to Congress, ant
to Congress alone. Every act Of that de
partment, private and public, every pape
| filed there. ig under thn custody pf hptl
houses Of Congress.
What we will do with these papers -
whether we will steal them, or burn them
or destroy them-we do not allow the exec
, ! utive department to put any inquiries Il
us. We would not put any inquiries I,
the President of the United States, becaus
the independence of that great Office dc
mands that he should not be inquired of TO
: his reasons, demands that he should b.
treated with respect. But every paper Of
, which he acts, on any duty whatever, exec
: utive or legislative, is ours as well as his
, The papers filed with him to induce the re
moval Of an officer are the very papers W
, ought to consider in the very question o
| appointment. Whether we should us
, | them for one one purpose or anotheris no
, now matter of dispute. 1t may come VI
at another time.
From the beginning of this government
until now these public archives have bee
us open TO the houses Of Congress as to an
D other department of the government. Tn
: law has been kept on the books, unbroke
! and unimpaired, by which the head of tn
great department may not only be CON
: PEELED to bring all papers in his department
private or public, but he may be compelle
G personally TO come before either house to b
I examined, cross-eXamined, and re'exam
ined.
p Why, sir, was examined by the homo
4 | o1,la ~ fpnp, Ilnlo thn Snpri