THE PRESIDENT, MR. STANTON AND GENERAL GRANT
The action of General Grant
in surrendering his office to Mr. Stanton, after the decision of the Senate, baffled the
Presidents undoubted purpose of forcing an issue before the Supreme Court. The law
left to the General no alternative; for it makes the attempt to exercise the duties of the
office under the circumstances in which General Grant found himself a high misdemeanor.
The Tenure of Office Bill, as it is called, is undoubtedly the law. It has been properly
enacted by Congress. The President has objected, and it has been constitutionally passed
over his veto. It may be a distasteful law; it may be inexpedient; but it can not be
considered unconstitutional merely because the President says so.The truth is, that the question involved is
very open one. The veto with which the President returned the law to Congress shows no
more than that the point has been settled by precedent and even by construction. The
question arose in the House of Representatives in 1789, and was vigorously argued upon
both sides. Mr. Madison, in the Federalist, had maintained that the consent of the
Senate was necessary to removal; but in the debate he declared that he had changed his
opinion. Notwithstanding his change of view, however, the question was decide in favor of
the Presidents sole power only by a vote of thirty-four to twenty in the House, and
in the Senate by the casting vote of the President. In 1839 the Supreme Court declared
that it was a subject upon which there had been at the formation of the Government great
difference of opinion, but it thought the general rule of construction had become that the
Presidents power is exclusive. Judge Story, in commenting upon the question, said
that it had always been believed that the final decision was greatly influenced by respect
for the character of President Washington then in office; and he adds, that it is
"the most extraordinary case in the history of the Government of a power conferred by
implication upon the Executive by the assent of a bare majority in Congress which has not
been questioned on many other occasions." Mr. Webster admitted the uniformity of the
practice, but denied the justice of the view upon which it was founded.
The time has come when Congress, holding
the same view with Mr. Webster, questions the propriety of the decision of "the bare
majority" of the earlier Congress, and agrees with Mr. Madisons first opinion.
The right to do so is undeniable, and the action which it takes in accordance with its
judgment is certainly good law until it is contradicted by something more imposing than
President Johnson opinion. It is a law in any case which he can not refuse to execute
without impeachment; for if his opinion of the constitutionality of laws which are passed
over his veto is to prevail against the will of Congress, his will is the law of the land,
and Mr. Johnson has decided for himself, according to Mr. Sewards notorious phrase,
that he will be king and not President.
We must not omit to state, however, that
the President had acknowledged the authority of the law, after it was finally passed. He
"suspended" Mr. Stanton according to the law, and in obedience to it also he
sent into the Senate the reasons of his action. But he hoped, of course, before the matter
ended, to effect his original object, which was to be rid of Mr. Stanton, and to ruin
General Grant by making him appear to be a cats-paw. It is a very homely remark to
make, but it is very intelligible, that if the President expects to "use" the
General-in-Chief he must be up very early in the morning. The General does not say much,
but his acts are very eloquent. They are so eloquent, indeed, that those who have been
sorely troubled by his silence have no further doubt of his meaning. He means to obey the
laws, and not to aid the President in thwarting them.
That we presume to be
also Mr. Stantons intention. He does not remain in the War Department for his own
pleasure, but certainly he has no right whatever upon any point of etiquette to allow the
President the smallest opportunity to frustrate the plan of reconstruction which Congress
has adopted. The President and his friends ought to remember that if he had shown a
disposition to adhere faithfully to the Constitution, of which he is so fond of speaking,
and to execute in good faith and according to their spirit the laws which he did not like
as well as those that he approved, the Civil Tenure Bill would not have been passed. When,
however, it became evident that in every way, short of an actual refusal to observe the
law, he was aiming to baffle its purpose, Congress, which might not see reason for
impeachment, could very properly do what might seem uncourteous but was not
unconstitutional. The situation is perfectly comprehensible, and will be misunderstood
only by those who are resolved not to understand.
Articles Related to Overt
Obstruction of Congress:
Congress
February 2, 1867, page 67
February 16, 1867, page 99
March 16, 1867, page 163
How Long?
June 29, 1867, page 402
Reconstruction and Obstruction
July 6, 1867, page 418
The Summer Session
July 6, 1867, page 418
The Fortieth Congress
July 17, 1867, page 467
Thanks to the District Commanders
July 27, 1867, page 467
Impeachment Postponed
July 27, 1867, page 467
A Desperate Man
August 13, 1867, page 546
The Secretary of War
August 24, 1867, page 530
Samson Agonistes at Washington (cartoon)
August 24, 1867, page 544
The Stanton Imbroglio (illustrated satire)
August 24, 1867, page 542
Secretary Grant
August 31, 1867, page 546
Southern Reconstruction
August 31, 1867, page 547
The Political Situation
September 7, 1867, page 562
General Thomas
September 7, 1867, page 563
Southern Reconstruction
September 7, 1867, page 563
The General and the President
September 14, 1867, page 578
General Sickles Also
September 14, 1867, page 579
Southern Reconstruction
September 21, 1867, page 595
The Presidents Intentions
September 28, 1867, page 610
Impeachment
October 5, 1867, page 626
The Main Question
October 5, 1867, pages 626-627
Suspension during Impeachment
October 19, 1867, page 658
"Disregarding" The Law
November 2, 1867, page 691
Impeachment
December 14, 1867, page 786
General Grants Testimony
December 14, 1867, page 786
The Presidents Message
December 14, 1867, page 787
General Grants Letter
January 1, 1868, page 2
Secretary Stantons Restoration
January 25, 1868, page 51
Reconstruction Measures
January 25, 1868, page 51
The President, Mr. Stanton and General Grant
February 1, 1868, page 66
Romeo (Seward) to Mercutio (Johnson) (cartoon)
February 1, 1868, page 76
The War Office
February 1, 1868, page 77
Secretarys Room in the War Department (illus)
February 1, 1868, page 77
The New Reconstruction Bill
February 8, 1868, page 83
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