Political Quotes

Charles Sumner: “Otherwise the President alone might declare war, without an Act of Congress, doing indirectly what he cannot do…”

On the record
Otherwise the President alone might declare war, without an Act of Congress, doing indirectly what he cannot do directly, and thus overturning that special safeguard which places under the guardianship of Congress what Story justly calls “the highest sovereign prerogative.
Said by
Charles Sumner
Massachusetts

Editor's note · Context

This quote warns against the potential for presidential overreach if Congress's role in declaring war is undermined.

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