Senate Power Quotes
See {588514} for an additional take on the subject.
This letter was written shortly after the Constitution had been signed by the convention delegates. This difference between Adams and Jefferson would be at the heart of the first great partisan struggle in American history. Adams, as the second President, tried to increase and use the power of the Presidency. Jefferson opposed him, especially when Adams tried to run for a second term. The Adams-led Federalists were pitted against Jefferson’s Democratic Republicans in the first, and perhaps still the most bitter partisan struggle in American political history. The Jeffersonians accused Adams and the Federalists of trying to unravel the American Revolution and revert to a monarchy. The people not only sided with the Democratic Republicans, ousting Adams, but also turned out most of the Federalists. It was the end of the Federalist Party, and a new conservative party—without monarchial tendencies—the Whigs became the new opposition party.
The reason that this quotation is particularly important is that Taft, in addition to being a President, was also the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the only Supreme Court Justice to become President.
At the beginning of the Trump presidency, he had a very diffferent idea of the role of the Senators in the Appontment of the Cabinet then other Presidents have had and certainly that most senators had. However, the Republicans held the majority and most were cowed by the threat of Trump encouraging the nativists and the Tea Party to run against them from the right in the next primary.
From this quotation, {624648} and {615901} it is clear that the framers of the Constitution intended the treaty making powers to be shared by the President and the Senate. In practice, in modern times treaties are usually initially negotiated by diplomats under the supervision of the President and the Senate gets to concur or not in the ratification process. However, there have been a number of treaty failures including the League of Nations where the lack of coordination has resulted in a situation where the Senate had to accept or reject something which the President had negotiated and the Senate rejected the treaty.
From this quotation, {624648} and {615902} it is clear that the framers of the Constitution intended the treaty making powers to be shared by the President and the Senate. In practice, in modern times treaties are usually initially negotiated by diplomats under the supervision of the President and the Senate gets to concur or not in the ratification process. However, there have been a number of treaty failures including the League of Nations where the lack of coordination has resulted in a situation where the Senate had to accept or reject something which the President had negotiated and the Senate rejected the treaty.
The "single Senator" was Roscoe Conkling. He was the Republican Party Leader (Boss) and a great proponent of the Spoils System of giving all Federal appointments to loyal party men without regard for competency and merit. See {622341} and {622340} for Hayes’ contest with Conkling.
