495. THE ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION.—Impelled by the necessity of a united front against England, the Second Continental Congress sought to give force to the Declaration of Independence by drawing up a comprehensive plan of union. This plan, embodied in the Articles of Confederation, was put into operation on March 1, 1781. The new government was a confederation or league of states, rather than a federal government such as we have to-day. The states gave up such important powers as the right to declare war, and the right to borrow and coin money, but the Articles specifically declared that "each state retains its sovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right which is not by this federation delegated to the United States in Congress assembled."

The Confederation government was seriously defective. There was no national executive and no judiciary. All authority was concentrated in a one-chambered congress, the delegates to which were entirely under the control of the state legislatures which chose them. The central government had no real authority or power. Its congress could reach the individual only through the action of the state governments, and these it could not coerce. The Confederation government managed to carry the states through the last two years of the war, and then declined rapidly in power and influence. The Congress could not force the states to coperate with one another in matters of national interest. The inability of the central government, either to pay the interest on the national debt or to force the states to observe treaties which we made with foreign powers, cost us the respect of Europe. "We were bullied by England," writes John Fiske of this period, "insulted by France, and looked askance at in Holland."

The defects of the Articles could not be remedied, for amendment was by unanimous consent only, and on every occasion that an amendment was proposed, one or more states refused their assent. By 1786 it was the conviction of most American statesmen that if the country were to be saved from anarchy and ruin the central government would have to be reorganized.

496. THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787.—In May, 1787, delegates from every state except Rhode Island came together in Philadelphia to consider "means necessary to render the Constitution of the Federal government adequate to the exigencies of the Union."

Early in the session Edmund Randolph introduced what has been called the Virginia plan. This called for an abandonment of the Articles of Confederation and demanded the establishment of a strong national government. The Virginia plan favored the larger and more populous states by providing a national Congress of two houses, in both of which representation was to be on the basis of population.

Of the several other plans put before the Convention the most notable was that proposed by William Paterson of New Jersey. The adherents of this plan wished to retain the Articles of Confederation. The Articles were to be revised so as to give greater powers to the central government, but in most practical concerns the states were to continue sovereign. The New Jersey plan opposed the idea of a two-chambered legislature in which the states were to be represented on the basis of population. If representation in both houses of Congress were on the basis of population, it was declared, the larger and more populous states would be able to dominate the National government and the rights of the smaller states would be inadequately safeguarded.

After a long debate a compromise plan was adopted. It was agreed that there should be established a strong national government, but one sufficiently checked by constitutional provisions to safeguard the rights of the states. The national legislature was to consist of two houses. In the upper house the states were to be represented equally, while in the lower chamber representation was to be on the basis of population.

497. THE NEW GOVERNMENT.—The Convention completed the Constitution on September 17, 1787, and the document was immediately placed before the states. By the summer of 1788 the necessary number of states had ratified the Constitution, and on April 30, 1789, the new government was put to work under George Washington as first President.

The English statesman Gladstone has implied that our Constitution was an original creation, "struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man." But as a matter of fact the Constitution was not so much the result of political originality as it was a careful selection from British and colonial experience. The trial of the Confederation government had proved especially valuable, and in drawing up the Federal Constitution, the members of the Constitutional Convention were careful to avoid the defects of the Articles of Confederation. The most fundamental difference between the Confederation government and the new Federal government was that the Federal Constitution provided for an adequate executive and judiciary to enforce the Federal laws directly upon the individual. The Confederation government, it will be remembered, had been obliged to rely upon the states for the enforcement of all laws.

B. FRAMEWORK OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

498. THE THEORY OF LIMITED GOVERNMENT.—The new Constitution created a system of Federal government which retains the advantages of local self-government for the states, but at the same time secures the strength which results from union. The government of the United States is a compromise between centralization and decentralization, the balance between these two extremes being maintained by a rather elaborate system of checks, balances, and limitations.

These checks, balances, and limitations we may consider under five heads: first, private rights under the Federal Constitution; second, the threefold division of powers in the Federal government; third, the division of powers between Federal and state governments; fourth, interstate relations; and fifth, the supremacy of Federal law.

499. PRIVATE RIGHTS UNDER THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. [Footnote: For the prohibitions upon the states in favor of private rights, see Chapter XLV.]—The constitutional limitations upon the Federal government in behalf of private rights fall into two groups: those designed to protect personal liberty, [Footnote: Some of the limitations in favor of personal liberty enumerated in this section are contained in the first ten amendments to the Constitution, adopted in a body in 1791.] and those designed to protect property rights.

In many important particulars the Federal Constitution protects personal liberty against arbitrary interference on the part of the National government. Congress may pass no law establishing or prohibiting any religion, or abridging either freedom of speech or freedom of the press. The right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for a redress of grievances shall not be denied. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended. Congress may not define treason. Neither bills of attainder, nor ex-post facto legislation may be passed by Congress. Jury trial, fair bail, and freedom from both excessive fines and cruel and unusual punishments are guaranteed by the Constitution. Neither life, liberty nor property may be taken without due process of law.

The Federal Constitution likewise protects the property rights of the individual against Federal aggression. The state governments alone may define property. Congress may not tax articles which are exported from any state. All direct taxes must be apportioned according to population. [Footnote: The Sixteenth Amendment exempts the income tax from this rule.] All duties, imposts, and excises must be uniform, that is, they must fall upon the same article with the same weight wherever found. Under the right of eminent domain, the Federal government may take private property for public use, but in such a case the owner must be fairly compensated.

500. THREEFOLD DIVISION OF POWERS IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.—A second distinctive feature of our system of government is that Federal authority is distributed among three distinct branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial. This is part of the general system of "checks and balances" by means of which the framers of the Constitution sought to prevent any branch or division of government from securing undue control of the governmental machinery.

The basic merit of this threefold division of powers is that it safeguards each branch of government against aggression from the other two branches. And yet this division of powers is by no means so complete that the three branches do not work together. For example, both the appointive and the treaty-making powers of the President are shared by the Senate. The President shares in legislation through his veto power, as well as through his right to send messages to Congress. The Senate has the right to impeach all civil officers of the United States, and may even exert some control over the Supreme Court through its right to prescribe the number of its judges and the amount of their salaries. The judiciary, on the other hand, enjoys the unique power of passing upon the constitutionality of the acts of the other two branches of government.

501. DIVISION OF POWERS BETWEEN FEDERAL AND STATE GOVERNMENTS.— Another feature of the check and balance system is that authority is divided between Federal and state governments. The Tenth Amendment declares that "the powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the states, are reserved to the states." Thus we speak of the National government as enjoying delegated or enumerated powers, while the state governments have residual or unenumerated powers. The Federal government must show some specific or implied grant of power for everything that it does, but state governments need only show that the Federal Constitution does not prohibit them from doing whatever they see fit.

This division of powers between Federal and state governments has several distinct advantages. For example, it allows Federal and state governments to act as a check upon one another. Furthermore, the device admirably divides governmental labor: the Federal government is given control of matters essentially national, while the states are left in charge of affairs distinctly state or local in character.

502. INTERSTATE RELATIONS.—Further to guarantee the integrity of the Federal system, the Constitution specifies the fundamental nature of interstate relations. The states are independent of one another, and are equal in Federal law. The laws of a state have no force, and their public officials have no authority, beyond the state limits.

The Constitution specifically provides that "full faith and credit shall be given in each state to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state." This does not mean that the laws of a particular state are binding upon persons in other states. It does mean, however, that the courts of each state shall endeavor to give the same force to the laws of a neighboring state as those laws would have in the courts of the legislating state.

To prevent discriminations against citizens of other states, the Federal Constitution provides that the citizens of each state are "entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens in the several states." This means that a citizen of one state may remove to a neighboring state, and there enjoy the same civil rights that the citizens of the latter state enjoy.

In order that fugitive criminals may be tried and punished, the Constitution further provides that "a person charged in any state with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another state, shall, on the demand of the executive authority of the state from which he fled, be delivered up to be removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime."

503. SUPREMACY OF FEDERAL LAW.—A last distinctive feature of our system of government is that Federal law is supreme. The Constitution states: "This Constitution and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof, and all treaties made or which shall be made under the authority of the United States shall be the supreme law of the land." The states are supreme in their sphere of action; nevertheless, when it is claimed that there is a conflict between state and Federal law, the latter prevails. Federal law is the supreme law of the land, and, in the last instance, it is the Supreme Court of the United States which is the interpreter of that law. The decisions of the Supreme Court are binding upon the Federal government, upon the several states, and upon private individuals.

C. DEVELOPMENT OF THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION

504. THE FORMAL AMENDING PROCESS.—The Constitution of the United States may be formally amended in any one of four ways. First, an amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of each House of Congress, and ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the states. Second, an amendment may be proposed by a two-thirds vote of each House of Congress and ratified by conventions in three fourths of the States. Third, an amendment may be proposed by a national convention, called by Congress upon the request of the legislatures of two thirds of the states, and ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the states. The fourth method resembles the third, except that ratification is by conventions in three fourths of the states.

505. AMENDMENTS I-XIX.—There have been nineteen Amendments to the Federal Constitution. [Footnote: For the full text of these Amendments see the Appendix.]

Of these the first ten were adopted as a body in 1791, to satisfy those who feared that the new Constitution did not adequately protect individual or states' rights against Federal aggression. Amendments I- VIII are designed to protect the fundamental rights of the individual. The Ninth and Tenth express the principle that the Federal government is one of enumerated powers, while those powers not specifically conferred upon the Federal government by the Constitution are reserved to the states or to the people.

The Eleventh Amendment, adopted in 1798, provided that the Federal judicial power should not be construed to extend to any suit against a state by citizens of another state, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign state.

The Twelfth Amendment, adopted in 1804, provided that presidential electors should cast separate ballots for President and Vice President.

The Thirteenth Amendment (1865) abolished slavery, the Fourteenth (1868) defined citizenship and sought to prevent the states from discriminating against certain classes of citizens, while the Fifteenth Amendment (1870) declared that the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

In 1913 the Sixteenth Amendment authorized Congress to tax incomes without apportionment among the several states, and without regard to any census or enumeration.

In the same year the Seventeenth Amendment provided for the direct election of United States Senators.

In 1919 an Eighteenth Amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from, the United States.

A Nineteenth Amendment was adopted in 1920. This declared that the right to vote shall not be denied to any citizen of the United States on account of sex.

506. CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES THROUGH JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION.—The Federal Constitution has also been modified and developed by judicial interpretation. The United States Supreme Court has maintained that the Federal government possesses not only those powers expressly granted by the Constitution, but also those powers which are included with, or implied from, powers expressly granted. This liberal construction is authorized by the Constitution itself, for the last clause in Section VIII of Article One of that document declares that Congress shall have power to "make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution" its enumerated powers. Under this doctrine of implied powers, the influence of the National government has been markedly extended, chiefly with regard to the war power, the power to regulate interstate commerce, and the power to levy taxes and borrow money.

507. CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES THROUGH USAGE.—The Federal Constitution has also been modified by the force of custom and political practices. Examples of the power of usage to modify the Constitution are numerous, but a few will suffice to illustrate the principle. Custom has limited the President of the United States to two terms. In conformity with a long-established custom, Presidential electors do not exercise independent judgment, but merely register the vote of their respective constituents. Though the Constitution provides that the appointive power of the President shall be exercised with the advice and consent of the Senate, custom virtually prohibits the Senate from challenging the President's Cabinet appointments. On the other hand, many executive appointments of minor importance are determined solely by members of Congress. Usage decrees that the President alone may remove officers which he has appointed with the advice and consent of the Senate. Lastly, the legislative committee system, as well as the entire machinery of the political party, is the outcome of custom. Concerning these important instruments of practical politics, the Constitution is silent.

QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT

1. Point out some similarities among the American colonial governments.

2. Describe some of the earlier attempts at union.

3. What was the nature of the Confederation government?

4. For what specific purpose was the Constitutional Convention convened?

5. What was the Virginia plan? The New Jersey plan?

6. What was the fundamental difference between the Confederation government and the new Federal government?

7. What is the theory of limited government?

8. What two classes of private rights are safeguarded by the Federal Constitution?

9. What is the nature and purpose of the threefold division of powers?

10. To what extent does the Constitution divide powers between Federal and state governments?

11. Outline the nature of interstate relations, as provided for in the Federal Constitution.

12. What is meant by saying that Federal law is supreme?

13. By what four methods may the Federal Constitution be amended?

14. Enumerate and briefly characterize the nineteen amendments to the Federal Constitution.

15. To what extent has the Federal Constitution been modified by judicial interpretation?

16. How may the Constitution be modified by usage? Give some examples.

REQUIRED READINGS

1. Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter iii.

2. Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xviii.

3. Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter v.

4. Review chapters ii, iii and iv of the text.

QUESTIONS ON THE REQUIRED READINGS

1. What were the chief powers of the New England Confederation? (Guitteau, page 208.)

2. What was the nature of the Stamp Act Congress? (Guitteau, pages 208-209.)

3. What was the most fatal weakness of the Confederation government? (Guitteau, page 212.)

4. Outline the movement for constitutional revision. (Beard, pages 42- 44.)

5. Discuss the membership of the Constitutional Convention. (Beard, pages 44-45.)

6. Outline the defects of the Articles of Confederation which were avoided in framing the Federal Constitution. (Beard, pages 53-56.)

7. What were some of the objections to the ratification of the Federal Constitution? (Beard, pages 56-58.)

8. Compare the English and American Constitutions with respect to flexibility. (Munro, pages 57-58.)

9. What effect has constitutional development had upon the division of powers? (Munro, pages 69-70.)

10. Has the development of the Federal Constitution made government more or less democratic? (Munro, page 70.)

TOPICS FOR INVESTIGATION AND REPORT

I

1. The protection of your personal liberty under the Federal Constitution.

2. The protection of your property rights under the Federal Constitution.

3. Compare the first eight amendments to the Federal Constitution with the bill of rights in your state constitution.

4. Compare the Federal Constitution with the constitution of your state with respect to length, number of subjects treated, and complexity of language.

5. The process of extradition between your state and neighboring commonwealths.

II

6. Evolution of the state. (Gettell, Problems in Political Evolution, chapter i.)

7. Nature of Federal government. (Gettell, Readings in Political Science, pages 268-270.)

8. Advantages and disadvantages of Federal government. (Gettell, Readings in Political Science, pages 276-280.)

9. Colonial origins of the Federal Constitution. (Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter i; Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter i; Reed, Form and Functions of American Government, chapter i.)

10. Preliminaries of national government. (Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter ii; Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter ii.)

11. The meaning of "We, the People of the United States," in the Preamble to the Constitution. (Taft, Popular Government, chapter i.)

12. Sovereignty. (Gettell, Introduction to Political Science, chapter viii; Leacock, Elements of Political Science, chapter iv.)

13. Relation of state and Federal governments. (Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xxi.)

14. The supremacy of Federal law. (Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter iv.)

15. The check and balance system. (Gettell, Readings in Political Science, pages 332-336; Forman, The American Republic, chapter iv.)

16. The separation of powers. (Beard, American Government and Politics, pages 152-155; Gettell, Introduction to Political Science, chapter xvii; Leacock, Elements of Political Science, part ii, chapter i.)

17. Interstate relations. (Leacock, Elements of Political Science, chapter vi.)

18. Personal liberty and government. (Cleveland, Organized Democracy, chapter vii; Gettell, Introduction to Political Science, chapter ix.)

19. The doctrine of implied powers. (Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xx.)

20. Evolution of the Federal Constitution. (Kimball, The National Government of the United States, chapter ii.)

FOR CLASSROOM DISCUSSION

21. Is the Federal Constitution too difficult of amendment? Is it too easily amended?

22. Does the Constitution adequately protect state governments against Federal aggression?

23. Has judicial interpretation of the Constitution proved helpful or harmful?

24. Has constitutional modification through usage proved helpful or harmful?



CHAPTER XL

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

A. CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT

508. ORIGINAL METHOD OF CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT.—The Federal Constitution sought to protect the office of chief magistrate against popular passion by providing for the indirect election of the President. According to the Constitution, each state was to appoint, "in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct," a number of electors equal to the state's combined quota of senators and representatives in Congress. These electors were to meet, each group in its own state, and were to vote by ballot for two persons. These ballots were then to be transmitted sealed to Congress, where the President of the Senate was to open and count them in the presence of both houses. The person receiving the highest number of votes was to be declared President, while the individual obtaining the next highest number was to fill the office of Vice President.

509. CHANGES IN THE ORIGINAL METHOD OF CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT.—Three important changes have been brought about in the original method of choosing the President.

At the beginning of our national history, the state legislatures themselves chose the Presidential electors, but with the spread of democracy the legislatures gradually transferred the choice of these electors to the people. To-day Presidential electors are in every state chosen by popular vote, on a general state-wide ticket.

After the election of 1800 it became apparent that in order to prevent the candidate for Vice President from defeating the candidate for President, there would have to be a separate ballot for each of these officers. In 1804 there was accordingly passed the Twelfth Amendment to the Constitution, providing that Presidential electors should thenceforth cast separate ballots for President and Vice President.

Party politics have effected a third change in the original method of choosing the President. The Constitution evidently intended that the Presidential electors should be men of high repute, and that they should select the nation's chief executive as the result of mature deliberation and independent judgment. But as early as the third Presidential election (1796) it became clearly understood that the electors would merely register the opinions of their constituents. Technically the electors still choose the President; as a matter of fact they exercise no discretion, but merely express decisions previously reached by their respective constituents.

510. PRESENT METHOD OF CHOOSING THE PRESIDENT.—To-day the President of the United States is elected as follows:

Each political party nominates a candidate for the presidency at a national convention held in June or July of the presidential year. At about the same time the various parties in each state nominate the quota of presidential electors to which the state is entitled. The people vote on these electors on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of each leap year. In each state the electors receiving a plurality assemble at the state capitol on the second Monday in January following their election, and vote directly for President and Vice President. These votes are then certified and sent to the President of the Senate. On the second Wednesday in February, this officer opens them, and in the presence of the two houses of Congress, counts them, and declares elected the candidate who has received the majority of the electoral votes. If no candidate has a majority, the House of Representatives elects one of the three leading candidates, the Representatives from each state casting one vote. In 1800 and again in 1824, the presidential election was thus decided by the House.

511. QUALIFICATIONS.—All persons who are entitled to vote for the most numerous branch of the state legislature are entitled, likewise, to vote in presidential elections. [Footnote: For limitations upon the suffrage in the various states, see Chapter XXXIII, Section 415.]

No presidential elector may hold any office of trust or profit under the United States. By custom electors are also residents of the district from which they are chosen.

The President of the United States must be a natural-born citizen of the United States and must be at least thirty-five years of age. He must also have been a resident of the United States for fourteen years.

512. COMPENSATION.—The President's salary is determined by Congress, but the amount may be neither increased nor decreased for the existing presidential term. Between 1789 and 1873 the presidential salary was $25,000, and in 1873 it was increased to $50,000 a year. Since 1909 the President has received an annual salary of $75,000, plus an allowance for travelling expenses and the upkeep of the White House or Executive Mansion.

513. TERM AND SUCCESSION.—The President-elect is inaugurated on the 4th of March following his election, and serves until the 4th of March four years later. By custom, though not by law, he is limited to two terms.

The Constitution provides that in case the President is removed by impeachment, death, resignation, or inability, his duties shall devolve upon the Vice President. In 1886 the Presidential Succession Act provided that in case of the inability of both President and Vice President the Cabinet officers shall succeed in the following order: Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of War, Attorney-General, Postmaster-General, Secretary of the Navy, and Secretary of the Interior. No Cabinet officer has ever succeeded to the Presidency, but Presidents Tyler, Fillmore, Johnson, Arthur, and Roosevelt were formerly Vice Presidents who ascended to the Presidency because of the death of the chief executive.

514. THE VICE PRESIDENT.—The Vice President of the United States is elected in the same manner and by the same electors as the President, with this exception: The failure of any Vice-Presidential candidate to receive a majority of the electoral votes permits the Vice President to be chosen by the Senate from the two candidates receiving the highest number of electoral votes. The qualifications for the Vice President are the same as for the President. The Vice Presidents salary is $12,000 a year.

Aside from the fact that he may succeed the President there is little to be said about the Vice President. He presides over the Senate, but he is not a member of that body. He can neither appoint committees, nor even vote, except in case of a tie. Vice Presidents have generally exerted little influence upon national affairs. During President Wilson's second term, neither the President's extended absence in Europe, nor his serious illness at home, operated to increase the influence of the Vice President. Under President Harding's administration, however, Vice President Coolidge was accorded considerable recognition, including the privilege of sitting in the President's Cabinet meetings.

B. DUTIES AND POWERS OP THE PRESIDENT

515. GENERAL STATUS OF THE PRESIDENT—The President of the United States acts as the head of the executive branch of government. Since the executive is independent of the other two branches, the President is subject to the control of neither legislature nor judiciary. The President cannot be arrested for any cause whatsoever. No ordinary court has jurisdiction over the Chief Magistrate, though misconduct may result in his being impeached by the Senate of the United States.

The President enjoys extensive powers, some of which are enumerated in the Constitution, [Footnote: Article II] and others of which he has acquired by the force of custom. These powers are divisible into four groups, which may be discussed in the following order: War powers, powers with reference to foreign affairs, administrative powers, and legislative powers.

516. WAR POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT.—Section II of Article II of the Constitution provides that the President shall be "commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states when called into actual service of the United States." In pursuance of this power the President controls and directs the nation's military and naval forces, and appoints all army and naval officers. [Footnote: In time of war, the President may dismiss these officers at will; in time of peace, however, they are removed by court-martial.] The execution of the military law under which the army and navy are governed is also directed by the President. The President may call out the state militia, when in his judgment such action is necessary in order to suppress insurrection, repel invasion, or enforce the laws. In case of war with foreign countries, the President as commander-in-chief assumes full direction of hostilities.

So long as he acts within the bounds of international law, the President may do anything which he deems necessary to weaken the power of the enemy. In the exercise of this right President Lincoln blockaded the southern ports during the Civil War, suspended the writ of habeas corpus, declared martial law in many districts, and freed the slaves by proclamation. During the World War (1917-1921), the powers of President Wilson were greatly expanded. For the purpose of bringing the struggle with Germany to a successful termination, Congress conferred upon the President large powers of control over food, fuel, shipbuilding, and the export trade. The railway, telegraph, and wireless systems were taken over by the government under the President's war powers.

An important phase of the President's war powers is the constitutional charge to take care that the laws be faithfully executed. Usually the administration of law is a peaceful process, but when the civil authorities are rendered powerless by persons defying Federal law, the President may use his military power to restore order. On three notable occasions the President has enforced the laws by the use or display of military force. In 1794 President Washington called out the militia of four states to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion. During the Civil War, President Lincoln resorted to military force to execute the laws. Again, in 1894, President Cleveland used regular troops to prevent railway strikers in Chicago from interfering with the Federal mails.

517. CONTROL OVER FOREIGN AFFAIRS.—The Constitution vests in the President the power to negotiate treaties and conventions with foreign nations. In practice the President usually acts through the Secretary of State. During the process of negotiation it is customary for the President to consult with the Senate committee on foreign relations, as well as with the leaders of the senatorial majority. Such consultation is a wise step, because no treaty may become law unless ratified by the Senate.

The President receives diplomatic representatives from foreign countries. This is largely a ceremonial duty, but it may involve serious consequences. When the independence of a foreign country is in doubt, or when the representative of any nation is personally objectionable to our government, the President may refuse to receive the foreign representative. In case relations between this and a foreign country become strained, or in case the representative of a foreign power is guilty of misconduct, the President may request the withdrawal of, or may even dismiss, the foreign representative. This severance of diplomatic relations may lead to war.

The President has the further power to appoint diplomatic representatives to foreign countries. We send ambassadors to the more important countries, ministers-resident to most countries, envoys extraordinary or ministers-plenipotentiary to several countries, and commissioners for special purposes. In the absence of the permanent diplomatic representative some minor officer takes temporary charge, and is known as the charg d'affaires ad interim. All of the President's diplomatic appointments must be confirmed by the Senate, but the President acting alone may remove any diplomatic officer. Such removal is at the pleasure of the President. The term of office enjoyed by diplomatic representatives is not fixed by law, but due to the influence of the spoils system, it often terminates when a new President assumes office.

Besides diplomatic officers, who are charged with political duties, our foreign service comprises various grades of consuls, or commercial representatives. The President and the Senate likewise choose consular officers, but from lists of persons who have qualified under the merit system. Promotion and removal are determined by Civil Service rules.

518. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT.—The chief administrative function of the President is to carry into effect the laws of the United States. In the discharge of this duty the President is aided by a large number of subordinate officials, who, directly or indirectly, are responsible to him as head of the administration. Altogether there are more than half a million officials in the executive civil service of the United States.

Over the appointment of these numerous officers the President has a varying measure of control.

He alone appoints a few executive officials, such as his private secretary and the members of his Cabinet. The latter are nominally chosen by the President and the Senate, but in practice the Senate universally approves Cabinet appointments sent in by the President. Officers in this first group may be removed only by the President.

The President and the Senate together select about 12,000 of the more important executive officers. These include diplomatic agents, Federal judges, most military and naval officers, collectors of customs and internal revenues, and many others. In the case of minor positions to be filled within a congressional district, the President usually confers with the Representative from that district, if that Representative is of the President's party. If such Representative is not of the President's party, the candidate for the position is really selected by the Senators from the proper state. [Footnote: Provided, of course, that these Senators belong to the same political party as the President. ] The more important positions in this group are filled by the Senators from the state in which the vacancy exists, the President ratifying such selections as a matter of course. Officers in this second group are removable only by the President.

More than 300,000 of the minor executive positions are now filled by the Civil Service Commission. Persons entering office through the merit system, may be removed only for a cause which will promote the efficiency of the service.

In addition to his administrative duties, the President has the power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in the case of impeachment. A pardon fully exempts the individual from the punishment imposed upon him by law; a reprieve, on the other hand, is simply a temporary suspension of the execution of a sentence.

519. LEGISLATIVE POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT.—Though primarily an executive officer, the President enjoys important powers over legislation.

The President may convene either or both houses of Congress on extraordinary occasions. For example, he may call an extra session of Congress to consider such questions as the tariff, currency reform, or a treaty.

The President has the right to send messages to Congress from time to time during his term. The recommendations contained in these messages exert some direct influence upon legislation, and are important in formulating public opinion outside of Congress.

Indirectly the President exerts a considerable influence upon legislation by bringing political pressure to bear upon the Congressional leaders of his party. He also exerts some influence upon legislation by the use of the patronage which accompanies his appointing power. This influence is important as breaking down the barriers between the executive and legislative branches of government.

The President may issue ordinances which have the force of law. As commander-in-chief of the army and navy, he may issue ordinances for their regulation. In pursuance of the duty to enforce the laws, the President may issue ordinances prescribing uniform means for the enforcement of the statutes. He may issue ordinances for specific purposes, as, for example, Congress in 1912 authorized the President to issue legislative ordinances for the government of the Canal Zone.

Very important is the President's veto power. The President may veto any bill or joint resolution passed by Congress, with the exception of joint resolutions proposing Constitutional amendments. But the President must veto the bill as a whole, and not particular items. Even though vetoed by the President, a bill may still become law by being passed by a two-thirds vote in each house of Congress. In spite of these restrictions, the President exerts a considerable influence upon legislation by the use of the veto, or by the threat that he will employ it. Most authorities regard the veto power as a wholesome check upon harmful and unwise legislation.

QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT

1. Describe the original method of choosing the President.

2. Outline the three important changes which have taken place in the original method of choosing the President.

3. Describe the present method of choosing the President.

4. What are the qualifications for Presidential electors? For President?

5. What is the compensation of the President?

6. What is the nature of the Presidential Succession Act?

7. Discuss the Vice Presidency.

8. Into what four groups may the powers of the President be divided?

9. Enumerate the chief war powers of the President.

10. What is the extent of the President's treaty-making power?

11. Outline the President's duties with respect to appointing and receiving foreign representatives.

12. What is the chief administrative function of the President?

13. Discuss the President's power to grant pardons and reprieves.

14. Explain the ordinance-issuing power of the President.

15. What is the extent of the President's veto power?

REQUIRED READINGS

1. Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter x.

2. Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xxv.

3. Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter viii.

4. Reed, Form and Functions of American Government, chapter xix.

QUESTIONS ON THE REQUIRED READINGS

1. Outline the work of the national convention. (Reed, pages 228-229.)

2. Describe the presidential campaign. (Reed, pages 233-234.)

3. Why was the presidential election of 1876 disputed? (Guitteau, pages 288-289.)

4. Describe the inaugural ceremony. (Guitteau, page 292.)

5. What is the origin of the President's right to remove officers appointed by him? (Beard, page 193.)

6. How did President Roosevelt once succeed in carrying out the terms of an international agreement without the consent of the Senate? (Beard, pages 197-198.)

7. Why was the veto power originally bestowed upon the President? (Beard, page 202.)

8. What is the rule of senatorial courtesy? (Munro, page 107.)

9. What is the pocket veto? (Munro, page 118.)

10. What is the President's relation to the courts? (Munro, pages 124- 125.)

11. What is the method of impeaching a President? (Reed, pages 237- 238.)

TOPICS FOR INVESTIGATION AND REPORT

I

1. The part played by your state in the last Presidential election.

2. Extent to which the President of the United States has made use of the militia of your state.

3. Compare the powers of the President of the United States with the powers of the Governor of your state.

4. Cabinet officers, past or present, who were natives of your state.

5. List some of the offices within the bounds of your state which are filled, directly or indirectly, by the President of the United States.

II

6. The biography of some one President. (Consult an encyclopedia, standard works on American history, and special biographies.)

7. The history of some one important Presidential election. (Consult a standard history of the United States.)

8. The inauguration of a President. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 1-5.)

9. The war powers of the President. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 22-32.)

10. Federal intervention in the Chicago strike of 1894. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 32-46.)

11. The treaty-making power. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 79-127.)

12. The presidential power of appointment. (Taft, Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers, chapter iii.)

13. The pardoning power of the President. (Taft, Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers, chapter v.)

14. The presidential veto. (Taft, Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers, chapter i.)

15. The President at work. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 5-10.)

16. The President as party leader. (Jones, Readings on Parties and Elections in the United States, pages 205-211.)

17. Relations of the executive and legislative branches of the National government. (Beard, American Government and Politics, pages 205-214.)

18. The impeachment of President Johnson. (Consult any general work on American history, or an encyclopedia.)

19. "Why great men are not chosen Presidents." (Bryce, The American Commonwealth, vol. i, chapter viii.)

FOR CLASSROOM DISCUSSION

20. Would a single presidential term of six years be preferable to the present custom of electing a President for not more than two four-year terms?

21. Should the President be chosen directly by the people, without resort to the electoral college?

22. Does Congress exercise too little control over the choice of the President's Cabinet?

23. Advantages and disadvantages of the veto power. (See Munro, The Government of the United States, page 119.)

24. Should the President be permitted to veto separate items in a bill?



CHAPTER XLI

THE NATIONAL ADMINISTRATION

520. DEVELOPMENT OF THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE.—The President is the head of the Federal executive, but in the performance of his numerous administrative duties he is aided by a number of subordinate officers.

No executive departments were directly established by the Constitution, but that document evidently assumes their existence, for it clearly states that the President "may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices." [Footnote: Article II, Section II, of the Constitution.]

President Washington was authorized by Congress to appoint three assistants: a Secretary of State, a Secretary of the Treasury, and a Secretary of War. With the development of governmental functions, additional departments have been created. Congress established the Post Office Department in 1794, the Navy Department in 1798, the Department of the Interior in 1849, the Department of Justice in 1870, the Department of Agriculture in 1889, the Department of Commerce in 1903, and the Department of Labor in 1913. At present, then, there are ten Federal executive departments, all of them under the direct control of the President.

521. THE CABINET.—The heads of these ten departments are appointed by the President, nominally with the consent of the Senate. They may be removed only by the President, and by him at will. Neither in the Constitution nor in the statutes of Congress is there provision for a Cabinet, but as the result of custom which has been formulating since Washington's second term the heads of the Federal executive departments have come to constitute, in their collective capacity, the President's Cabinet. Cabinet meetings are generally held twice a week, or oftener, as the President desires.

The American Cabinet should not be confused with the Cabinet in Great Britain and other European countries. In Europe the Cabinet is generally a parliamentary ministry, that is to say, a group of men chosen from the majority party in the legislature. These Cabinet members, or ministers, sit in the legislature, propose laws, and defend their measures on the floor. They are held responsible for the national administration. This means that when the majority of the legislature fails to support them they are expected to resign, in order that the opposition party may form a new Cabinet.

Quite different is the American Cabinet. This body is advisory only, and the President may disregard the advice of any or all of its members. The Cabinet in this country is accountable only to the President. The attitude of Congress toward Cabinet officers has nothing to do with the tenure of office of these executive heads. Cabinet members do not sit in Congress; they do not, in the capacity of Cabinet officers, introduce or defend legislation; and they are not held responsible for the administration.

522. HEADS OF DEPARTMENTS AS ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICERS.—Collectively the heads of the ten executive departments act as the President's Cabinet; individually they administer their respective departments. Though responsible to the President and at all times working under his direction, the heads of departments are allowed a wide range of independence. Department heads may appoint and remove at will a large number of minor officers in their respective departments, though of late years this power has been considerably restricted by Civil Service rules. The exact scope of the work of the various departments is largely denned by law. Within the limits thus set, the head of the department is free to make regulations affecting the conduct of departmental business. To expedite business, the work of each department is divided and subdivided among numerous bureaus, boards, and commissions, functioning under the general direction of the head of the department.

523. THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.—Without doubt the most important of the subordinate executive officers is the Secretary of State. His most pressing duty is to conduct foreign affairs in accordance with the wishes of the President. In pursuance of this duty, the Secretary of State issues instructions to diplomatic and consular officers, issues passports to American citizens going abroad, and otherwise exercises control of matters touching foreign relations.

Important domestic duties devolve upon the Secretary of State. When the President desires to communicate with the Governors of the several states, he acts through the Secretary of State. The Secretary is the custodian of the Great Seal of the United States. It is he who oversees the publication of the Federal statutes. The Secretary of State likewise has charge of the archives containing the originals of all laws, treaties, and foreign correspondence.

Much of the work of the Department of State is performed through bureaus, the titles of which indicate their respective functions. Of these bureaus the following are the more important: the diplomatic bureau, the consular bureau, the bureau of accounts, the bureau of indexes and archives, the bureau of rolls and library, the bureau of appointments, and the bureau of citizenship. Each of these bureaus is headed by a chief who is directly responsible to the Secretary of State. In addition to these chiefs of bureaus, the Secretary is aided by three assistant secretaries of state.

524. DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY.—Supervision of the national finances is the chief business of the Secretary of the Treasury. The Secretary annually submits to Congress estimates of probable receipts and expenditures, and supervises the collection of customs and internal revenues. He also issues warrants for all moneys paid out of the treasury.

The scope of the department's work may be indicated by an enumeration of its chief officers. These include the Secretary himself, three assistant secretaries, six auditors, the treasurer, the comptroller of the treasury, the director of the mint, the register, the comptroller of the currency, the commissioner of internal revenue, the director of the bureau of engraving and printing, the chief of the secret-service department, the captain commandant of the coast guard, the superintendent of the life-saving service, the surgeon-general of the public health service, the supervising architect, and the farm loan commissioner.

525. THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR.—National defense is the chief concern of the Secretary of War. Coast fortifications, the supervision of navigation, and river and harbor improvements fall within the scope of the department. Our insular possessions are administered by the Secretary of War. It is also the duty of this officer to prepare estimates of the expenses of his department, to supervise all expenditures for the support and transportation of the army, and to take charge of the issuance of orders for the movement of troops. In addition, he has charge of the Military Academy at West Point, and recommends all appointments and promotions in the army service.

Under the Secretary of War are grouped a number of administrative bureaus, each headed by an army officer detailed for a period of four years. Of these officers the following are the more important: the inspector-general, the quartermaster-general, the adjutant general, the surgeon-general, the chief of engineers, the chief of ordnance, the chief signal officer, the chief of the coast artillery, the judge advocate general, the provost-marshal general, and the chief of the bureau of insular affairs.

526. THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY.—The Department of the Navy is likewise concerned with national defense. While less important than the Department of War, the Department of the Navy is steadily gaining in prestige. The Department is in charge of a Secretary, aided by an assistant secretary. It is the duty of the Department of the Navy to superintend the construction and armament of war vessels, and in addition exercise a supervisory control over the naval service. The Naval Academy at Annapolis and the Naval War College at Newport are in charge of the Department of the Navy.

The administrative work of the Department is carried on by seven bureaus, most of them in charge of line officers of the Navy, working directly under the Secretary. These bureaus are as follows: the bureau of navigation, the bureau of ordnance, the bureau of yards and docks, the bureau of supplies and accounts, the bureau of steam engineering, the bureau of medicine and surgery, and the bureau of construction and repairs.

527. THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—This Department is headed by the Attorney-General, who acts as the chief legal adviser of the National government. It is his duty to represent the government in all cases to which the United States is a party. It is he who conducts proceedings against corporations or individuals who violate the Federal laws. General supervision over all Federal district attorneys and marshals is exercised by the Attorney-General. This officer likewise examines the titles of lands which the government intends to purchase. The Attorney-General has a supervisory charge of the penal and reformatory institutions which are Federal in character. Applications for pardons by the President are investigated by the Attorney-General. Still another of his duties is to superintend the codification of the Federal criminal laws.

In these various duties the Attorney-General is assisted by an under- officer known as the solicitor-general.

528. THE POST OFFICE DEPARTMENT.—This Department, headed by the Postmaster-General, has general charge of the postal service. The Postmaster-General awards contracts for the transportation of the mails, and directs the management of the domestic and foreign mail service. The handling of money orders, the parcels post system, and the postal savings banks come under the control of the Postmaster- General. Of great importance is the power of this officer to bar from the mails publications which are fraudulent or otherwise obnoxious.

Working under the Postmaster-General are four assistant postmasters- general, each in general charge of a group of services within the department.

529. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR.—Aided by two assistant secretaries, the Secretary of the Interior performs a number of important functions. He has charge of all public lands, including national parks. The handling of Indian affairs constitutes one of his duties. The territories of Alaska and Hawaii come under the direct supervision of this department.

Many miscellaneous functions are performed by the various bureaus within the department. Patents, pensions, and the geological survey come within the purview of the department. The Secretary of the Interior has charge of the distribution of government appropriations to various educational institutions. A general supervision over a number of charitable institutions within the District of Columbia is also exercised by this officer.

530. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.—All matters pertaining to agriculture in the widest sense are the concern of the Department of Agriculture. Under the direction of the Secretary the Department issues a large number of scientific and technical publications, including the Agricultural Yearbook, the series of Farmers' Bulletins, the Monthly Weather Review, and the Crop Reporter. Quarantine stations for imported cattle, and the inspection of domestic meats and imported food products are concerns of the various bureaus within the Department. Of great importance is the work of the weather bureau in sending out storm, flood, frost, and drought warnings.

An increasingly important phase of the Department's work is the Forest Service, the work of which has been described in Chapter XXX. An important bureau is the bureau of animal industry, which combats animal diseases and gives advice concerning the best breeds of poultry and cattle. The bureau of plant industry ransacks the world for new crops suitable for our soils, and gives fruit-growers and farmers advice concerning plant parasites. Insect pests are the concern of the entomology division. Additional functions of the Department of Agriculture may be indicated by an enumeration of some of the more important of its remaining bureaus and divisions. These include the bureau of chemistry, the bureau of soils, the bureau of statistics, the bureau of crop estimates, the office of public roads and rural engineering, the Federal horticultural board, and the bureau of markets.

531. THE DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE.—In 1913 what for ten years had been known as the Department of Commerce and Labor was divided into two separate departments, a Department of Commerce and a Department of Labor.

The chief duty of the Department of Commerce is to foster the foreign and domestic commerce of the United States. To promote our mining, manufacturing and fishing industries, and to develop our transportation facilities are, therefore, among the aims of this department. The census, the coast survey and lighthouses, and steamboat inspection are concerns of the Department of Commerce. The scope of the Department, which is increasing rapidly, may be indicated by an enumeration of the more important bureaus grouped within it. These include the bureau of foreign and domestic commerce, the bureau of census, the bureau of lighthouses, the bureau of coast and geodetic survey, the steamboat inspection service, the bureau of navigation, the bureau of standards, and the bureau of fisheries.

532. THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR.—Though at present the functions of the Department of Labor are fewer than those of the other Departments, they are being rapidly expanded by the extension of government interest in industry. The Department is concerned with practically all matters which affect labor conditions in the United States.

The Department of Labor collects and publishes information upon all subjects connected with labor and capital, the hours and wages of labor, and methods of improving the condition of the working classes. It seeks to encourage industrial good will, and to adjust labor disputes peaceably. An important bureau within the Department is the bureau of immigration, which, under the direction of the commissioner- general of immigration, is concerned with the administration of our immigration laws. The bureau of naturalization keeps a record of immigrants, and supervises their naturalization. Of growing importance is the children's bureau, which investigates matters having to do with child labor, infant mortality, orphanage, and the work of the juvenile courts.

533. MISCELLANEOUS BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS.—In addition to the executive departments which have been briefly discussed, the Federal administration includes many independent boards, bureaus, and commissions which perform duties not assigned to any of the ten departments. These agencies have been established from time to time under the authority of Congressional statutes. The chiefs of the bureaus and the members of the boards and commissions are appointed by the President and the Senate, most of them for a term ranging between six and twelve years. These officials are largely experts, who happily are sufficiently exempt from the spoils system to stand a fair chance of surviving a change of administration.

Among the more important of these boards and commissions are the following: The Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Farm Loan Board, the Federal Board for Vocational Education, the Federal Trade Commission, the Interstate Commerce Commission, the United States Tariff Commission, and the Civil Service Commission. The nature and functions of most of these administrative agencies have been discussed elsewhere in the text, and need not be gone into here.

QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT

1. Trace briefly the development of the Federal executive departments.

2. What is the nature of the President's Cabinet?

3. Contrast the American with the European cabinet.

4. What function do the heads of departments perform individually?

5. What are the chief functions of the Secretary of State?

6. Enumerate the more important officers working under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury.

7. Describe the work of the Department of War.

8. What are the chief functions of the Secretary of the Navy?

9. What are the chief duties of the Attorney-General?

10. Describe the work of the Post Office Department.

11. What types of work are the concern of the Department of the Interior?

12. Discuss briefly the work of the Department of Agriculture.

13. What is the function of the Department of Commerce? Of the Department of Labor?

14. Name some of the more important boards and commissions which are independent of the ten executive departments.

REQUIRED READINGS

1. Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter ii.

2. Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xxvii.

3. Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter ix.

4. Reed, Form and Functions of American Government, chapter xxiv.

QUESTIONS ON THE REQUIRED READINGS

1. Outline the duties which are common to the heads of all of the executive departments. (Beard, pages 216-218.)

2. Contrast the National administration with the state administration. (Reed, pages 286-287.)

3. What is the purpose of the Library of Congress? (Reed, pages 298- 299.)

4. Describe the work of the General Land Office under the Department of the Interior. (Guitteau, pages 318-319.)

5. What is the function of the Commissioner of Patents? (Guitteau, page 319.)

6. What are the duties of the Commissioner of Education, under the Secretary of the Interior? (Guitteau, page 320.)

7. Name some of the more important boards and commissions created during the World War. (Guitteau, pages 325-326.)

8. Compare our Department of the Interior with the Department of the Interior in France. (Munro, pages 136-137.)

9. What is meant by the statement that the National administration is decentralized? (Munro, page 142.)

10. Describe briefly the work of the Civil Service Commission. (Beard, pages 222-224.)

TOPICS FOR INVESTIGATION AND REPORT

1. Membership of the President's Cabinet at the present time.

2. The biography of some one member of the President's Cabinet.

3. The work of some bureau or department in the National administration. (Reports on the work of the various departments may be secured by writing to the respective departments at Washington, D. C. See also Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States of America.)

4. Compare the National administration with the administrative department in your state, with respect to

(a) Scope of work

(b) Centralization

(c) Efficiency

(d) Control by the people.

II

5. Evolution of the executive. (Gettell, Introduction to Political Science, chapter xix.)

6. Functions of the Federal executive. (Kimball, The National Government of the United States, chapter x.)

7. A history of the President's Cabinet. (Consult an encyclopedia.)

8. Membership of the Cabinet. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter iv.)

9. An Englishman's view of the American Cabinet. (Bryce, The American Commonwealth, vol. i, chapter ix.)

10. The Department of State. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter vi.)

11. The Department of the Treasury. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapters vii and viii.)

12. The Department of War. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter ix.)

13. The Department of the Navy. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter x.)

14. The Department of Justice. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter xi.)

15. The Post Office Department. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter xii.)

16. The Department of the Interior. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapters xiii and xiv.)

17. The Department of Agriculture. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter xv.)

18. The Department of Commerce. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter xvi.)

19. The Department of Labor. (Fairlie, The National Administration of the United States, chapter xvi.)

FOR CLASSROOM DISCUSSION

20. The American Cabinet compared with the English Cabinet, (See Munro, The Government of the United States, pages 143-145.)

21. Should the President be obliged to act in accordance with the wishes of a majority of his Cabinet?

22. To what extent should promotion in the civil service be on the basis of length of service? To what extent should promotion be determined by periodic examinations?

23. Do you favor the creation of a new executive department, to be called the Department of Public Welfare?



CHAPTER XLII

NATURE AND POWERS OF CONGRESS

534. CONGRESS CONSISTS OF TWO HOUSES.—The National legislature, or Congress, consists of a Senate or upper chamber, and a House of Representatives or lower chamber.

Several factors are responsible for this division of Congress into two houses. Undoubtedly the framers of the Constitution were influenced by the fact that the British Parliament and nearly all of the colonial legislatures consisted of two houses. A second factor is that in the opinion of the Fathers, a two-chambered legislature would allow each house to act as a check upon the other. Finally, the creation of a two-chambered legislature was necessary in order to reconcile the conflicting desires of the large and the small states. During the Constitutional Convention two opposing factions were brought together by the creation of a two-chambered legislature, in the upper house of which the states were to be represented equally, and in the lower house of which representation was to be on the basis of population.

A. THE SENATE

535. TERM AND QUALIFICATIONS OF SENATORS.—Two Senators are chosen from each state, regardless of population. The senatorial term is six years. In order to make the Senate a permanent body, membership is so arranged that one third of the Senators retire every two years. The Federal Constitution provides that Senators must be at least thirty years of age. In addition, a Senator must have been nine years a citizen of the United States, and he must be an inhabitant of the state from which he is chosen. The Senate alone is judge of the qualifications of its members.

With respect to the Senate, two disqualifications are imposed by the Federal Constitution. No one holding a Federal office may stand for election as Senator. Nor may any person become a Senator who has taken part in a rebellion against the United States after having taken an oath as a government officer to support the Constitution.

536. THE ELECTION OF SENATORS.—Previous to 1913 Senators were chosen by the various state legislatures, according to the provisions of the Federal Constitution. [Footnote: Article I, Section III.] This method proved unsatisfactory. Demoralizing political battles often took place in the state legislatures in the effort to select the states' Senators to Congress. Sometimes, even after a long struggle, no candidate was able to secure a majority, and a deadlock occurred. Thus, on the one hand, a state might be deprived of representation in the Senate for weeks or months, while, on the other hand, the attention of the legislature was so distracted by the senatorial struggle that purely state interests suffered. As the result of a long agitation growing out of these evils, the Federal Constitution was amended (1913) to permit the direct election of Senators.

Since 1913, then, any person may vote directly for Senator who, under the laws of his state, is qualified to vote for members of the more numerous branch of the state legislature. When, for any reason, a vacancy occurs in the representation of any state in the Senate, the Governor of the state issues a writ of election to fill such vacancy. Provided the state legislature grants the authority, the Governor also may appoint some person to serve as Senator until the vacancy is filled by popular election. Senators are generally reflected, and at the present time the average term of service is not six, but about twelve years.

537. PRIVILEGES AND IMMUNITIES OF SENATORS.—By the terms of the Constitution, Senators are paid out of the national treasury an amount to be determined by statute. At present both Senators and members of the House of Representatives receive $7500 a year, plus an allowance for travelling expenses, clerk hire, and stationery. Except in case of treason or breach of the peace, Senators and Representatives are immune to arrest during attendance at the sessions of their respective houses, and in going to and returning from the same. Both Senators and Representatives likewise enjoy freedom of speech and debate in their respective houses. In either chamber only the house itself may call members to account for their statements during the legislative session. No member of Congress may be prosecuted in the courts for libel or slander on account of statements made in Congress, or for the official publication of what he has said during the legislative session.

B. THE HOUSE or REPRESENTATIVES

538. MEMBERSHIP OF THE HOUSE.—Since the Senate is composed of two Senators from each state, its membership has been relatively stable. For a number of years there have been 96 Senators, two for each of the forty-eight states of the Union.

The membership of the House of Representatives, on the other hand, is steadily increasing, because based upon population. The number of Representatives to which any state is entitled depends upon its population as ascertained every ten years by a Federal census. After each census Congress determines the number of Representatives of which the House shall consist. The population of the United States is then divided by this number, and the quotient is taken as the ratio of representation. The population of each state is then divided by this ratio to discover the number of Representatives to which it is entitled. As a single exception to this rule, the Constitution provides that each state shall have at least one Representative regardless of population. Thus Nevada, Arizona, Wyoming, and Delaware are entitled to one Representative, whereas according to the above rule they would now be denied representation.

The present membership of the House of Representatives is 435.

539. WHO MAY VOTE FOR REPRESENTATIVES.—The Federal Constitution provides that members of the House of Representatives shall be chosen by persons who, in their respective states, are qualified to vote for members of the more numerous branch of the state legislature. Most male and female citizens over twenty-one years of age may vote for members of this more numerous branch, and hence for Representatives to Congress. In a number of states, however, educational, property and other qualifications are imposed. Certain types of criminals, the insane, and the otherwise defective are regularly excluded. [Footnote: For a fuller discussion of the suffrage, see Chapter XXXIII.]

540. QUALIFICATIONS OF REPRESENTATIVES.—The Federal Constitution declares that a Representative must be at least twenty-five years of age. He must have been a citizen for at least seven years, and at the time of his candidacy must also be an inhabitant of the state from which he is chosen. The House itself determines whether or not these qualifications have been met. No state may add to the constitutional qualifications, but through the force of custom a Representative is almost always a resident of the district which he is chosen to represent.

541. ELECTION OF REPRESENTATIVES.—The Federal Constitution permits the legislatures of the several states to regulate the time, manner and place of elections for its Representatives to Congress.

However, the Constitution reserves to Congress the right to alter these regulations at its discretion. This right has been exercised several times. Congressional statute has provided that Representatives shall be elected on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of even-numbered years, and that the election shall be by written or printed ballot. It is also in accordance with Congressional statute that Representatives are selected on the district plan, one Representative being chosen from each Congressional district in the state. Congress has furthermore provided that these districts shall be of as nearly equal population as possible, and that they shall be composed of "compact and contiguous territory."

542. THE CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT.—Subject to the above limitations the legislature of each state may determine the boundaries of its Congressional districts. The state legislature finds it necessary to redistrict the state if the decennial census shows that the population of the state has increased unequally in various sections, or in case the apportionment act of Congress changes the state's representation.

In many cases states have redistricted their territory for illegitimate reasons. The Federal provision with reference to contiguous territory has been loosely interpreted: in many cases territory is held to be contiguous if it touches the district at any point. The requirement that districts shall be of nearly equal population has often been disregarded altogether. Since the state legislature is controlled by the political party having a majority, the dominant party can arrange the district lines so as to secure a party majority in the greatest possible number of districts. This is done by concentrating the opposition votes in a few districts which would be hostile under any circumstances, and so grouping the remaining votes as to insure for the dominant party a majority in numerous districts.

543. GERRYMANDERING.—The result of this illegitimate redistricting has been to create districts of great irregularity. In 1812, when Elbridge Gerry was Governor of Massachusetts, the Republican party was in control of the state legislature. In districting the state so as to win for themselves as many districts as possible, the Republicans gave one of the Congressional districts a dragon-like appearance. To the suggestion of a famous painter that this looked like a salamander, a local wit replied that it was more nearly a Gerrymander. The term "gerrymander" has since continued to be used to designate this type of illegitimate redistricting. [Footnote: For the relation of gerrymandering to the problem of minority representation, see Chapter XXXV.]

544. TERM OF REPRESENTATIVES.—Representatives are elected for two years, the legal term commencing on the 4th of March following the election. Except in the case of a special session, the actual service of Representatives does not commence until the first Monday in December, thirteen months after election. Members are frequently relected, the average term being about four years. When for any reason a vacancy occurs in the representation from any state, the Governor may, on the authority of the Federal Constitution, issue a writ of election to fill the vacancy. A special election is then held in the district in which the vacancy has occurred, and the Representative so chosen serves for the remainder of the term. [Footnote: The privileges and immunities of Representatives are similar to those of Senators. See Section 537 of this chapter.]

C. THE POWERS OF CONGRESS

545. SPECIAL POWERS OF THE SENATE.—Of the three powers exercised exclusively by the Senate, the power to approve treaties is one of the most important. All treaties negotiated by the President must be approved by a two-thirds vote of the Senate before becoming law. The treaty may be approved or rejected as a whole, or it may be rejected in part, and additional articles recommended as amendments. If changed in form or content by the Senate the treaty does not become law until both the President and the foreign power have assented to the amendment or change.

In order to become valid, a large number of Presidential appointments must receive the approval of the Senate. [Footnote: See Chapter XL, Section 518.]

The Senate exercises a special judicial function in that it may sit as a court of impeachment for the trial of persons whom the House of Representatives has formally charged with treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. Excluding military and naval officers, who are tried by court-martial, and excluding also members of Congress, who are subject only to the rules of their respective houses, all Federal officers are subject to impeachment. Impeachment requires a two-thirds vote of the Senators present. Removal from office and disqualification to hold any office under the United States is the heaviest penalty which can be imposed upon an impeached official.

546. SPECIAL POWERS OF THE HOUSE.—The House likewise enjoys three special powers.

One of these is the right to elect a President of the United States in case no candidate has a majority of the electoral votes. This has happened only twice, in 1800, and again in 1824.

The Federal Constitution provides that all revenue bills must originate in the lower house. However, the Senate has come to share this power through its power to amend such bills.

The House of Representatives has the sole power to prefer charges of impeachment, that is to say, to present what may be called the indictment against the accused official. The case is then tried before the Senate, the House appointing a committee of its own members to act as the prosecuting agency.

547. GENERAL SURVEY OF THE POWERS OF CONGRESS.—The powers of Congress, i.e. the two houses acting together, are of two kinds: First, express powers, by which is meant those specifically enumerated in the Federal Constitution; and second, implied powers, by which is meant those which are incident to express powers and necessary to their execution. The foundation of the doctrine of implied powers is the constitutional clause [Footnote: Article I, Section VIII, of the Constitution.] which authorizes Congress to make all laws "necessary and proper" for carrying out the powers granted it by the Federal Constitution.

Grouping express and implied powers together, the more important powers of Congress may be summarized as follows:

Revenue and expenditures. Congress has the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imports, and excises, and to appropriate money in order "to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States." But indirect taxes must be uniform throughout the United States, and all direct taxes, except income taxes, must be apportioned among the states according to population. A further limitation is that Congress may not tax exports from any state, nor levy upon the "necessary instrumentalities" of any state government.

National defense. Here the powers of Congress are practically unlimited, except by the constitutional provisions that the President shall be commander-in-chief, and that military appropriations shall not be made for more than two years. Congress can raise and support armies, create and maintain a navy, and provide for the organization and use of the state militia. Congress may also declare war, and make rules concerning captures on land and sea.

Foreign relations. Congress as a body has little direct control over foreign relations, though the Senate shares the treaty-making power with the President. But Congress has the power to create diplomatic and consular posts, as well as "to define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations." Congress also exercises control over immigration and naturalization.

Economic interests. Congress may regulate commerce with foreign countries, among the several states, and with the Indian tribes. The exclusive power to coin money, and otherwise control the monetary system, is vested in Congress. Congress may make uniform laws on bankruptcy throughout the United States, and fix the standards of weights and measures. The establishment of post offices and post roads, and the protection of authors and inventors through legislation on patents and copyrights, are also functions of Congress.

Territories. Congress has the power to dispose of, and make all needful rules and regulations respecting, the territory or other property belonging to the United States. Congress likewise exercises exclusive control over the District of Columbia, and over all places purchased by the Federal government for the erection of forts, arsenals, and similar buildings. Congress also has the right to determine the admission to the Union of new states, and "to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States."

Crime. In criminal matters the power of Congress is slight. For example, it cannot say what constitutes treason, since that crime is defined by the Constitution. However, Congress may provide for the punishment of counterfeiters and persons committing crimes on the high seas or offences against international law. It may also define certain crimes against Federal law, and prescribe penalties therefor.

Control over the judiciary. The judiciary is an independent branch of government, but Congress may determine the number of Supreme Court judges, fix their salaries within certain limits, and define their appellate jurisdiction. Congress may also determine the jurisdiction, and define the procedure, of the inferior Federal courts.

Implied powers. Last among the powers of Congress is the authority granted to it by the Constitution to make all laws which shall be deemed necessary and proper for carrying into execution the powers expressly granted to Congress by the Constitution. It is under the authority of this clause, that the implied powers of Congress have been so greatly expanded.

QUESTIONS ON THE TEXT

1. What influences are responsible for the fact that Congress is a two-chambered body?

2. Discuss the term and qualifications of Senators.

3. How were Senators elected prior to 1913? How are they elected at the present time?

4. What are the chief privileges and immunities of Senators?

5. Discuss the membership of the House of Representatives.

6. What is the nature of the Congressional district?

7. What are the qualifications for Representatives?

8. Who may vote for Representatives?

9. What is gerrymandering?

10. What three powers are exercised exclusively by the Senate?

11. What are the special powers of the House?

12. Under what two heads may the general powers of Congress be classified?

13. Outline briefly the chief powers of Congress.

REQUIRED READINGS

1. Beard, American Government and Politics, chapter xiii.

2. Guitteau, Government and Politics in the United States, chapters xxii and xxiii.

3. Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter xiv.

4. Reed, Form and Functions of American Government, chapter xxi.

QUESTIONS ON THE REQUIRED READINGS

1. What was the Connecticut compromise? (Guitteau, pages 248-249.)

2. Why does the Constitution provide that one third of the Senate shall retire every second year? (Reed, page 255.)

3. What criticism has been brought against the principle of the equal representation of states in the Senate? (Guitteau, page 249.)

4. Compare the growth of the Senate with the growth of the House of Representatives. (Reed, page 258.)

5. What is the relative position of the two houses of Congress? (Reed, pages 257-258.)

6. What is the right to "frank"? (Reed, page 258.)

7. What are the "supplementary" powers of Congress? (Munro, page 217.)

8. What are the powers of Congress with respect to weights and measures? (Beard, page 259.)

9. What was Jefferson's attitude toward the powers of Congress? (Munro, page 209.)

10. What is the scope of the implied powers of Congress? (Munro, page 214.)

TOPICS FOR INVESTIGATION AND REPORT

I

1. Congressional districts in your state.

2. The biography of one of the Senators representing your state in Congress.

3. Make a study of your Representatives in Congress, with respect to their age, length of service, political principles, and attitude toward such national questions as the tariff, military defense and taxation.

4. A brief comparison of Congress with your state legislature.

II

5. Place of the Senate in our National government. (Reinsch, Readings on American Federal Government, pages 127-134.)

6. The House of Representatives in the United States compared with the British House of Commons. (Kaye, Readings in Civil Government, pages 149-155.)

7. Gerrymandering. (Beard, Readings in American Government and Politics, pages 219-220; see any other standard text on American Government.)

8. The immunities of Congressmen. (Cleveland, Organized Democracy, chapter xxvii.)

9. Relation of the two houses of Congress. (Bryce, The American Commonwealth, vol. i, chapter xviii.)

10. The Senate as a judicial body. (Bryce, The American Commonwealth, vol. i, chapter x.)

11. Constitutional limitations on the powers of Congress. (Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter xx.)

12. Relation of Congress to the President. (Bryce, The American Commonwealth, vol. i, chapter xx.)

13. The war powers of Congress. (Any standard text on American government.)

14. The taxing power of Congress. (Any standard text on American government.)

15. Other financial powers of Congress. (Any standard text on American government.)

16. The power to regulate commerce. (Any standard text on American government. An excellent reference is Munro, The Government of the United States, chapter xvii.)

17. The postal powers of Congress. (Young, The New American Government and its Work, chapter xiii.)

18. The control of Congress over territories. (Kimball, The National Government of the United States, chapter xxii. See also any other standard work on American government.)

FOR CLASSROOM DISCUSSION

19. Direct versus indirect election of Senators.

20. To what extent, if to any, should Congressmen consider the needs of their local district as of more importance than the needs of the nation as a whole?

21. Should the interval between the election of Representatives and the meeting of Congress be shortened?

22. Should we retain equal representation of states in the Senate, or should this principle be discarded as "undemocratic"?



CHAPTER XLIII

CONGRESS IN ACTION

A. ORGANIZATION OF CONGRESS

548. CONGRESSIONAL SESSIONS.—The Federal Constitution requires Congress to assemble at least once a year, and Congress has provided that the date of meeting shall be the first Monday in December. In addition to such special sessions as may be called either by the President or by Congress itself, there are two regular sessions. One of these is the long session, from December of each odd year until Congress adjourns, generally sometime during the following summer. The other is the short session, beginning when Congress assembles in December of each even year, and ending at noon on the 4th of March following.

The two houses of Congress jointly fix the time for adjournment, but in case they cannot agree upon this point, the President has the right to adjourn them to such time as he thinks fit. During the congressional session, neither house may, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two houses are sitting. Since 1800 congressional sessions have regularly been held at Washington, D. C., the National capital.

549. INTERNAL ORGANIZATION.—Each house of Congress has the right to determine its own rule of practice, punish members for disorderly conduct, and, by a two-thirds vote, expel a member. Members guilty of acts of violence or abusive language may be punished by a vote of censure, or may be obliged to apologize to the house. For the commission of a grave offense, a Congressman may be expelled from the house to which he was elected.

The Constitution requires that "each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members of either house shall, at the desire of one fifth of those present, be entered upon the journal." The object of this is to secure a permanent record of legislative action, as well as publicity of proceedings. The vote by yeas and nays fixes responsibility for his vote upon each member by making it a matter of public record. The Congressional Record, an official account of Congressional debates and proceedings, appears daily during Congressional sessions. This is supposedly a verbatim report of what is said in each house, but as a matter of fact members are allowed to edit and revise their remarks before these are printed. In the case of the House, many of the published speeches have never been delivered at all.

550. THE OFFICERS OF CONGRESS.—In the House of Representatives the chief officer is the Speaker, or presiding officer. The Speaker is chosen from the membership of the House by that body itself. As will be pointed out shortly, this officer is an important personage.

In the Senate the Vice President of the United States acts as the presiding officer. In the absence of the Vice President, or in case that officer succeeds to the Presidency, the Senate itself chooses a president pro tempore to occupy the chair. The presiding officer of the Senate is much less powerful than the Speaker of the House, indeed he is little more than a chairman or moderator.

There are a number of additional officers of Congress, who are chosen by the respective houses from outside their own membership. These officers include a clerk, who in the Senate is called the secretary; the door-keeper; the sergeant-at-arms; the postmaster; and the chaplain. Nominally these officers are chosen by each house, but as a matter of practice the choice is made by the caucus of the majority party, which is held a few days before the organization of each house.

551. THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.—A few days before the organization of the House, the caucus of the majority party settles upon its choice for Speaker. The candidate chosen invariably receives the solid vote of his party in the House, since it is a rule of the caucus that party members who take part in its discussions must abide by its decisions.

As chairman of the House, the Speaker performs the customary duties of a presiding officer. He opens and closes the sittings of the House, maintains order, and decides questions of parliamentary law. The Speaker acts as the official representative of the House in its collective capacity, and authenticates all official proceedings by his signature. It is he who announces the order of business, states the question, and announces the vote. He also has the right to appoint the chairman of the committee of the whole. The Speaker takes part in debate and may also vote.

552. POWER OF THE SPEAKER OVER LEGISLATION.—In addition to performing the customary duties of a presiding officer, the Speaker possesses important powers over legislation. The imperfect organization of the House, and its lack of effective leadership, as well as the vast amount of business coming before it, have tended to centralize much of the legislative power of the House in the hands of this officer.

The Speaker of the House has the power to determine to which committee a bill shall be referred. Thus he may determine the fate of a measure by sending it to a committee which he knows to be hostile to the bill, or to a friendly committee, just as he likes.

It is the Speaker who decides when a member is entitled to the floor, and no motion or speech can be made except by a member who has been duly recognized by the chair. There are a number of unwritten rules in this regard, but in the last analysis the Speaker may recognize only persons whom he desires to have speak. Thus Congressmen who are not of the Speaker's party may be kept from making themselves heard upon important measures. When a bill is before the House, the chairman of the committee in charge of the measure usually hands the Speaker a list of Congressmen who are to be heard upon the floor. By recognizing only those whose names appear on this list, the Speaker may confine the discussion to members who are favored by himself and his party.