The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1904-07-03

ton which was held ut Chicago last
week was "bossed'' by President
Roosevelt, much to the disgust of
many Senator'S and Representatives
who We're ambitious to boss the Con-
vention themselves. Judging from
much of the criticism of the President
which these disgruntled politicians in
spired a foreigner would naturally
have assumed that it was one of the
constitutional prerogatives of Con-
greSSmen to control the National con-
Ventions of their party.
Curiously enough, the National Con-
vention, which is the most recent of
our political institutions, was created
for the single purpose of preventing
Senators and Representatives from
debating the nominations for Presi-
dent and Vice President.
During the first quarter of the
nineteenth century nominations for
President and Vice President were die
tated by the members of Congress. No
other political machine before or since
was ever so powerful and dictatorial
as the Congressional caucus which
was called into being by Alexander
Hamilton, who escaped being a boss"
by the sheer good luck of living in a
day when bosses" were called lead
ers.
The trainers of the Constitution
made no provision for the nominal
ton of candidates for President and
Vice President. Indeed, they were
scrupulously careful to remove those
offices from the arena of nominations
by providing that the President and
Vice President were to be chosen by
an Electoral College. No nominations
would be necessary. Each State would
select its wisest public counsellors who
had succeeded in keeping out of Con-
greSS, and this body of representa-
tives. without prejudice or passion or
parusanShip, would choose a PreSi-
dent and Vice President. Their the
DRY managed to exist for twelve years.
Washington was SO obviously the
unanimous choice of the American
people that there was no opposition
to his election. When he refused a
third term and announced his inten-
Federalists were in the majority,
thanks to the prestige his two adj
miniStrationS had given them. 1t was
Fin the natural order of things that
John Adams. who had been Vice Pres
ident under Washington, should be
elected President by the Federalist
electors, despite the opposition of
Hamilton and many other party lead
kers. But in 1900 Hamilton set his wits
to work to devise q scheme by which
Adams could be defeated and Jeffer-
son at the same time kept out of the
White House.
sFor long time the Federalist men,
b6Ns of Congress had been holding
caucuses to discuss pending legislation
and to unite upon a policy. Hamilton
saw in this caucus a club to defeat
Adams and avoid what he regarded
as the calamity of Jefferson. His
scheme was to induce the Federalist
electors to divide their votes equally
between Adams and Pinckney, in the
hope that Pinckney would receive a
vote or so more than his colleague
and thus defeat Adams. At that time
the candidate receiving the greatest
number of votes in the college, pro-
viding it was a majority. was declared
President and the one receiving the
next highest number was declared
Vice President The Federalist eau
Gus indorsed Hamilton's plan, but the
Federalist party was discredited by
its alien and sedition law, and the
-Federalists elected a majority of
the Presidential electors.
Although the anti-Federalists vehe-
mently denounced the Congressional
nomination of Presidential candidates
as an outrage of the spirit of the Con- |
stitution, they were quick to perceive |
the political advantages of the new |
machine that Hamilton had created. |
From 1900 to 1924 the Congressional |
caucus nominated the candidates for |
President and the Electoral College |
ratifieCS the action of the caucus.
: In this scheme of things the State |
politicians were eliminated. They |
had about as much influence in Ma
s-.ional politics as an anti-Addicks del |
egate from Delaware now has in a Re-
publican National Convention. That
is they were allowed to be enthusiast
tic spectators if they cared to play the
role. So5n they began to make Vehe-
ment protests against Congressal usur-
patton on the nominating power. In
the meantime a bitter contest was
i'm progress in many of the states
against the legislative caucus, which
nominated the candidates for the State
office in the same manner that the
congressman nominated the candl-
dates for President and Vice PreSl-
dent. One by one the Legislatures
abdicated their nominating powers
The legislative caucus gave way to
the mixed caucus composed or MEM
hers of the Legislature and delegates
from the legislative districts in which
the party was not represented in the
Legislature. Finally the Legislatures
surrendered. and q representative con-
vention composed exclusively or dele
oates took over the business of nomi-
hating the candidates for State Of
flee.
The opposition to the Congressional
caucus gained in intensity. Mass
meetings were held to denounce Con-
eressional usurpation OF popular
rights. Legislatures, particularly in
Western States, adopted resolutions
DENYING the power and right OF Con-
gressmen to impose candidates on tne
electoral College. Members or the
Tennessee Legislature met IN caucus
i'm 1922 and recommended that An
drew Jackson be nominated for Pres
ident BY 1924 the Congressional eau
Gus was in such popular disrepute Ihdt
two-thirds of the Republican members
refused to attend the one calico oy
Crawford's managers. The caucus
was held nevertheless, and the minor
ity nominated Crawford for President,
only &C of the ZIG members pelhs
present. A passionate debate follow
ed in the Senate. Refus King mace
a brilliant speech in which ne ue
nounced the new, extraordinary sell
created central power, stronger than
that of the Constitution, which threat
ems to cverturn the balance of power
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