Roscoe Conkling

Congress gave them their building.

And so to the extent that we as voters or members of Congress as legislators see the Court as this danger to constitutional democracy rather than as a guardian, we have lots of members from the past like Roscoe Conkling who's like, "It is our duty to stop them.

It is our duty to hold those justices accountable to our view of what the Constitution means, not the other way around."

Mm-hmm.

Speaking of his native state, New York, he said, quote, What is the government of this state? What has it been during the forty years of my acquaintance with it? The government of the Constitution? Oh, no, not half of the time or half way.

From the days of Fenton and Conkling and Arthur and Cornell and Platt, from the days of David B. Hill, down to the present time, the government of the State has presented two different lines of activity.

One of the constitutional and statutory offices of the State, and the other of the party leaders.

They call them party bosses.

They call the system, I don't coin the phrase, the system they call invisible government.

For I don't know how many years Mr. Conkling was the supreme ruler in this state.

The governor did not count.

The legislature did not count.

Now it's a complicated story as to how this will be enforced, of course, and I strongly urge you to read certain of those Lincoln documents in the Mike Johnson Reader, and more importantly to read at least that greatest hits selection I provided in the reading packet of the documents on emancipation, which by the way come out of a book called Free at Last, collection of the greatest hits of the documents of the American Emancipation, which are now published in five volumes, all of which are in the National Archives.

But one of those Lincoln documents I don't want you to miss, I said the other day, was the James Conkling letter.

It comes in August of 63.

One of the reasons that letter is interesting is that it shows us that though Lincoln could be one crafty And whether emancipation will ever truly succeed in this war, of course, depends on the Union winning on the battlefield.

It really depended on all those deaths at Gettysburg and at Vicksburg and so many other horrible places.

And yes, it's true that large, large numbers of those Union didn't necessarily believe they were fighting to free slaves, nor did they even want to.

But sometimes history is ahead of anyone's basic human individual motives, isn't it? But in this Conkling letter, so-called, it's a public letter that Lincoln mastered, this presidential art of the public letter, more than any previous president, and it was his version of the news conference, which didn't happen in those days.

An exclusive interview with Anderson Cooper or whatever the hell it would be today.

It was a powerful hub of political patronage.

He used his position to distribute thousands of government jobs to allies of his political boss, which was Senator Roscoe Conkling.

In fact, he was so fiercely dedicated to this partisan machine that President Hayes actually fired him in 1878 for over-dispensing these jobs.

But when he was selected as vice president running mate in 1880, it was a backroom political compromise.

He said he was as positive of Garfield's election as he was of reaching San Francisco, and chatted pleasantly upon the general topics of the day.

I could see that he was accustomed to the very best society, for he stood there in the blinding glare of my dazzling beauty as self-possessed and cool as though he were at home talking with Ben Butler and Conkling and Carpenter and other rising young men.

There is a striking resemblance between the Secretary and myself.

We are both tall and slender, with roguish eyes and white hair.

Speaking of his native state, New York, he said, quote, What is the government of this state? What has it been during the forty years of my acquaintance with it? The government of the Constitution? Oh, no, not half of the time or half way.

From the days of Fenton and Conkling and Arthur and Cornell and Platt, from the days of David B. Hill, down to the present time, the government of the State has presented two different lines of activity.

One of the constitutional and statutory offices of the State, and the other of the party leaders they call them party bosses they call the system i don't coin the phrase the system they call invisible government for i don't know how many years mr conkling was the supreme ruler in this state the governor did not count the legislature did not count comptrollers and secretaries of state and what not did not count it was what mr conkling said and in a great outburst of public rage, he was pulled down.

Then Mr. Platt ruled the state.

Do you, in any way, see any reason or foundation for the severe and bitter criticisms made against the stalwart leaders in connection with this crime?

crime?As you are well known to be a friend of the administration, while not unfriendly to Mr. Conkling and those acting with him, would you mind giving the public your opinion on this point?

Of course, I do not hold Arthur, Conkling, and Platt responsible for Guiteau's action.

In the first excitement, a thousand unreasonable things were said, and when passion has possession of the brain, suspicion is a welcome visitor.

I do not think that any friend of the administration really believes Conkling, Platt, and Arthur responsible in the slightest degree.

Conkling wished to prevent the appointment of Robertson.

The President stood by his friend.

One thing brought on another.

Mr. Bruce, somewhat nervous and slightly excited, started to the president's desk unattended.

Senator Roscoe Conkling of New York, who was sitting nearby, immediately rose and extended his arm to Mr. Bruce and escorted him to the president's desk, standing by the new senator's side until the oath had been administered, and then tendering him his hearty congratulations, in which all the other Republican senators, except Senator Alcorn, subsequently joined.

This gracious act on the part of the New York senator made for him a lifelong friend and admirer in the person of Senator Bruce.

This friendship was so strong that Senator Bruce named his first and only son Roscoe Conkling, in honor of the able, distinguished, and gallant senator from New York.

Senator Alcorn's action in this matter was the occasion of considerable unfavorable criticism and comment, some of his critics going so far as to intimate that his action was due to the fact that Mr. Bruce was a colored man.

But from my knowledge of the man and the circumstances connected with the case, I am satisfied this was not true.

His personal and political enemies charged that it was due to jealousy of President Grant.

Mr. Blaine was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination the following year.

Mr. Bruce, somewhat nervous and slightly excited, started to the president's desk unattended.

Senator Roscoe Conkling of New York, who was sitting nearby, immediately rose and extended his arm to Mr. Bruce and escorted him to the president's desk, standing by the new senator's side until the oath had been administered, and then tendering him his hearty congratulations, in which all the other Republican senators, except Senator Alcorn, subsequently joined.

This gracious act on the part of the New York senator made for him a lifelong friend and admirer in the person of Senator Bruce.

This friendship was so strong that Senator Bruce named his first and only son Roscoe Conkling, in honor of the able, distinguished, and gallant senator from New York.

Senator Alcorn's action in this matter was the occasion of considerable unfavorable criticism and comment, some of his critics going so far as to intimate that his action was due to the fact that Mr. Bruce was a colored man.

But from my knowledge of the man and the circumstances connected with the case, I am satisfied this was not true.

His personal and political enemies charged that it was due to jealousy of President Grant.

Mr. Blaine was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination the following year.