Not being granted, we violate our trust by assuming them as palpably as we would by acting in the face of a positive interdict; for the Constitution forbids us to do whatever it does not affirmatively authorize, either by express words or by clear implication.
Johnson warns that acting without constitutional authority equates to usurpation, which he considers a grave political crime.
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In reply to the resolution of the House of Representatives of the 1st instant, I transmit herewith a report from the Secretary of the Interior, in reference to a treaty now being negotiated between the Great and Little Osage Indians and…
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I transmit a report from the Secretary of State and a report from the Secretary of the Navy, with accompanying papers.
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