Charles Adams’s article, “Arrest the Chief Justice,” on LRC today is a very important piece of scholarship that proves once again that the Lincoln administration held the Constitution in utter contempt. After suspending habeas corpus and having the military arrest thousands of Northern political opponents, the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, Roger B. Taney, issued an opinion that, according to the Constitution, only Congress could legally suspend habeas corpus. Lincoln responded by ignoring the Constituton once again, and issuing an arrest warrant for Taney, thereby essentially destroying the doctrine of separation of powers.
The Lincoln idolaters viciously attacked Adams for including this story in his book, When in the Course of Human Events, arguing that the source of the story, Ward Lamon, was a drunk and definitely made the story up. (U.S. Grant was an even bigger drunk, but somehow his word is always taken as golden). But now Adams has discovered three separate, and extremely reputable sources for the story. The story is true: In response to a request by the Chief Justice that he obey the Constitution, Lincoln issued an arrest warrant for the Chief Justice.
In my debate with Harry Jaffa a while back, he repeated the Lincolnian lie that “Lincoln never did anything that was unconstitutional.” The opposite is closer to the truth: he essentially declared himself dictator and disregarded the Constituton for the duration of his administration.
Ever wonder how we got to the point where we are today, where the president is essentially a king for four years or more who can wage war around the globe without asking Congress to fulfull its constitutional duty and formally declare war? One reason is because the Lincoln idolaters have not only covered up this history, but also praise Lincoln’s dictatorial behavior as “great statesmanship” and a model for all future presidents. These “gatekeepers” of our history, as Adams calls them, are the enemies of limited, constitutional government.
10:02 am on January 5, 2004
