Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-20
EXECUTIVE PRESSURE
How the Presidents Have In
fIuenced Legislation.
EVERY ONE GUILTY
Cleveland Used More Coercion Than
Any of the Others.
THE POWER OF PATRONAGE
THE POWER OF PATRONAGE
Probably No One Has Used It Indi-
rectly More Than Roosevelt-His
Interest in Pending Measures.
BY WILLIAM r. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
| Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
| Herald.
Theoretically the President of the United
| States has no more right to influence or
even advise members of the Senate and the
| House of Representatives as to how they
| shall vote than he has to influence members
| of the Supreme Court how they shall decide
| the cases that are brought before them. He
| has no more authority to tamper with the
J legislative branch of the government than
| with the judicial, and it would not look
| well for him to send for Justice Harlan or
Justice Brown and tell them that he would
| like to have them Sustain the administra-
| ton by deciding Philippine cases one way
| or Porto Rican cases another. Neverthe-
| less that is what he and his predecessors
! have done continuously almost from the be-
| ginning of our history a nation. The
| three branches of the government, the ex-
| ecutive, legislative and judicial, are sup
posed to be- as they were intended to be-
| entirely independent of each other. Each
has it's own conscience, judgment and rea-
| soning powers and each is supposed to be
governed by them, and not by personal or
partisan motives and influences.
The Constitution says: He the PresldenD
shall from time to time give to the Con-
gress information as to the state Of the
Union and recommend to their consideration
such measures as he snail Judge necessary
and eXpedient.'
In the exercise of that prerogative all of
the Presidents have taken the trouble to
confer personally with members of the CO.
ordinate body. and their recommendations
have been attended with more or less pres
sure and moral SuaSion. The distribution
| of patronage by the President has been gov
erned to a considerable degree through all
genera tons by the manner in which his rec
concentrations have been received. If st.
Peter should make all of the Presidents of
the United States stand up in row ana
ask them If they ever used patronage 10
secure legislation every one of them would
| be compelled to plead guilty, even the saint
| ly Adams; and as for Grover Cleveland, the
| testimony of Arthur Pue German, George
Graham Vest. William l.. Wilson and other
democratic leaders. living and dead, would
convict him on every count in the indict-
ment.
always been very great. Even the Senate
of the United States has yielded to Its al
| lurements. Some of the greatest statesmen
this country has ever produced nave peen
| the most susceptible to the use OF patron
| age.
The newspapers announced the other
morning that professional fraud-hunter
was coming to Washington as the repre-
sentative OF a magazine 10 investigate
bribery in the American Congress. Some one
! has told him that the great corporations
and other large interests requiring legls-
lation have been using brides TO secure IT,
| which If he means money, Is not true
Rut If he means offices, let him begin with
George Washington and the First Congress,
and he will find plenty of that sort of cor
ruption all the way down the line.
Practice of Every President.
Every President has used patronage to
| influence legislation more or less, and both
directly and indirectly. Every President has
| used personal and official favors to accom-
plish his purposes. President after Presi-
dent without exception, has endeavored to
persuade or compel Congress to adopt rec
concentrations for legislation he has made
under his constitutional prerogative to Sc
cure the confirmation of his nominations
and the ratification of treaties. They have
been compelled TO use such methods in Or
der to get things done. The senators are
| less susceptible TO such influences than the
representatives, because their terms OF Of
flee are longer and the manner of their cleo
| ton is different. Hence, 1t takes more pa
tronage and more persuasion to get a bill
through the Senate than through the House
of Representatives. Votes in the Senate
cost more than they do in the House. If the
President did not use this pressure he would
not accomplish much.
The same arguments, the same pressure,
| the same patronage is used in every legis-
lative body and in every common council
| in the country and in every other country
wherever the opportunity and the materials
occur. 1t is the inevitable result of condt-
lions. If an executive desires to secure leg
islation he will naturally use such means as
are at his disposal
Coercion Used by Cleveland.
President Cleveland, as I have said, used
| more coercion upon Congress than any
other man in the list of Presidents. He had
about much trouble with Congress as
Cromwell had with the British parliament.
You will remember his letter which created
1aI NV 70
greSs as drove of wild horses" You will
remember, too. his long fight with the SEN
ate over their respective prerogatives, the
most serious that has ever occurred be-
tween the coordinate branches Of the gov
eminent since its organization. Only q
few weeks ago l published letter written
by Senator Vest, referring to this subject,
and If you will ask certain gentlemen they
will tell you that President Cleveland broke
up the democratic party by endeavoring to
dictate the action of Congress. He showed
the same disposition toward the legislature
of New York while he was governor. He
even attempted to control the nomination Of
candidates for the legislature He once
wrote John Kelly, when the latter was the
boss of Tammany Hall, saying that it
would contribute to his personal COM
fort If Kelly would prevent the nomina-
ton of "Sflver-tongue Grady to the state
senate. Grady got hold of the letter, and
was naturally very indignant. During the
succeeding presidential campaign he sup
ported Gen. Butler against Cleveland
we do not have to go so far back as An
drew Jackson or Martin Van Buren, to find
other examples of presidential interference
IN legislation. Gen. Grant attempted to
carry through several important measures
and had more trouble with the Senate about
the Island of Santo Domingo than Presi-
dent Roosevelt has had. President Harrl-
son and President Mckinley, having been
members of the legislative body were able
to do more with less effort than any of
their predecessors. Mckinley probably ex-
ercised more influence in Congress and
accomplished greater results In a quiet way
than any other man who has ever filled the
executive Office.
President Roosevelt's Candor
What always has been probably always
will be. AS long as Presidents take an in
terest in legislation they may be expected
to use their personal influence, their