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Lincoln Quotes
03-06-2018, 11:47 AM (This post was last modified: 03-06-2018 11:49 AM by David Lockmiller.)
Post: #8
RE: Lincoln Quotes
(03-04-2018 04:51 PM)RJNorton Wrote:  
(03-04-2018 04:12 PM)David Lockmiller Wrote:  It seems clear, then, that in the last extremity, if any local institution threatened the existence of the Union, the Executive could not hesitate as to his duty.

IMO, this is the same general concept as expressed in Andrew Jackson's Proclamation Regarding Nullification in 1832.

"The Constitution of the United States, then, forms a government, not a league, and whether it be formed by compact between the States, or in any other manner, its character is the same. It is a government in which all the people are represented, which operates directly on the people individually, not upon the States; they retained all the power they did not grant. But each State having expressly parted with so many powers as to constitute jointly with the other States a single nation, cannot from that period possess any right to secede, because such secession does not break a league, but destroys the unity of a nation, and any injury to that unity is not only a breach which would result from the contravention of a compact, but it is an offense against the whole Union. To say that any State may at pleasure secede from the Union, is to say that the United States are not a nation."

http://avalon.law.yale.edu/19th_century/jack01.asp

I agree that it is the same general concept, but I think that the constitutional argument made against secession by President Lincoln is much stronger and logically clear.

For Lincoln, his argument began with his Presidential oath of office: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

According to Francis Carpenter, President Lincoln made the following constitutional argument on April 7, 1864 to Mr. George Thompson and party:

"[B]efore I could have any power whatever, I had to take the oath to support the Constitution of the United States, and execute the laws as I found them. When the Rebellion broke out, my duty did not admit of a question. That was, first, by all strictly lawful means to endeavor to maintain the integrity of the government. I did not consider that I had a right to touch the 'State' institution of 'Slavery' until all other measures for restoring the Union had failed. The paramount idea of the constitution is the preservation of the Union. It may not be specified in so many words, but that this was the idea of its founders is evident; for, without the Union, the constitution would be worthless. It seems clear, then, that in the last extremity, if any local institution threatened the existence of the Union, the Executive could not hesitate as to his duty. In our case, the moment came when I felt that slavery must die that the nation might live!"

"So very difficult a matter is it to trace and find out the truth of anything by history." -- Plutarch
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Messages In This Thread
Lincoln Quotes - L Verge - 03-04-2018, 12:27 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - RJNorton - 03-04-2018, 02:02 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - RJNorton - 03-04-2018, 02:07 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - David Lockmiller - 03-04-2018, 04:12 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - RJNorton - 03-04-2018, 04:51 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - David Lockmiller - 03-06-2018 11:47 AM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - ELCore - 03-04-2018, 04:52 PM
RE: Lincoln Quotes - L Verge - 03-04-2018, 06:28 PM

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