At the time of Cleveland's inauguration as President, the Senate claimed an extent of authority which, if allowed to go unchallenged, would have turned the Presidency into an office much like that of the doge of Venice, one of ceremonial dignity without real power."The Federalist"--that matchless collection of constitutional essays written by Hamilton, Madison, and Jay--laid down the doctrine that "against the enterprising ambition" of the legislative department "the people ought to indulge all their jealousy and exhaust all their precautions."But some of the precautions taken in framing the Constitution proved ineffectual from the start.The right conferred upon the President to recommend to the consideration of Congress "such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient," was emptied of practical importance by the success of Congress in interpreting it as meaning no more than that the President may request Congress to take a subject into consideration.In practice, Congress considers only such measures as are recommended by its own committees.The framers of the Constitution took special pains to fortify the President's position by the veto power, which is treated at length in the Constitution.By a special clause, the veto power was extended to "every order, resolution or vote...except on a question of adjournment"--a clause which apparently should enable the President to strike off the "riders" continually put upon appropriation bills to coerce executive action; but no President has ventured to exercise this authority.Although the Senate was joined to the President as an advisory council in appointments to office, it was explained in "The Federalist" that "there will be no exertion of choice on the part of Senators." Nevertheless, the Senate has claimed and exercised the right to dictate appointments.While thus successfully encroaching upon the authority of the President, the Senate had also been signally successful in encroaching upon the authority of the House.The framers of the Constitution anticipated for the House a masterful career like that of the House of Commons, and they feared that the Senate could not protect itself in the discharge of its own functions; so, although the traditional principle that all revenue bills should originate in the House was taken over into the Constitution, it was modified by the proviso that "the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills." This right to propose amendments has been improved by the Senate until the prerogative of the House has been reduced to an empty form.
Any money bill may be made over by amendment in the Senate, and when contests have followed, the Senate has been so successful in imposing its will upon the House that the House has acquired the habit of submission.Not long before the election of Cleveland, as has been pointed out, this habitual deference of the House had enabled the Senate to originate a voluminous tariff act in the form of an amendment to the Internal Revenue Bill voted by the House.
In addition to these extensions of power through superior address in management, the ascendancy of the Senate was fortified by positive law.In 1867, when President Johnson fell out with the Republican leaders in Congress, a Tenure of Office Act was passed over his veto, which took away from the President the power of making removals except by permission of the Senate.In 1869, when Johnson's term had expired, a bill for the unconditional repeal of this law passed the House with only sixteen votes in the negative, but the Senate was able to force a compromise act which perpetuated its authority over removals.* President Grant complained of this act as "being inconsistent with a faithful and efficient administration of the government," but with all his great fame and popularity he was unable to induce the Senate to relinquish the power it had gained.
* The Act of April 5, 1869, required the President, within thirty days after the opening of the sessions, to nominate persons for all vacant offices, whether temporarily filled or not, and in place of all officers who may have been suspended during the recess of the Senate.
This law was now invoked by Republicans as a means of counteracting the result of the election.Such was the feeling of the times that partisanship could easily masquerade as patriotism.Republicans still believed that as saviors of the Union they had a prescriptive right to the government.During the campaign, Eugene Field, the famous Western poet, had given a typical expression of this sentiment in some scornful verses concluding with this defiant notice:
These quondam rebels come today In penitential form, And hypocritically say The country needs "Reform!"Out on reformers such as these;
By Freedom's sacred powers, We'll run the country as we please;We saved it, and it's ours.
Although the Democratic party had won the Presidency and the House, the Republicans still retained control of the Senate, and they were expected as a matter of course to use their powers for party advantage.Some memorable struggles, rich in constitutional precedents, issued from these conditions.
