ividuals in office, as being merely the President's
agents. This is the language: "The whole executive power being vested in
the President, who is responsible for its exercise, it is a necessary
consequence that he should have a right to employ agents of his own
choice to aid him in the performance of his duties, and to discharge
them when he is no longer willing to be responsible for their acts."

This, Sir, completes the work. This handsomely rounds off the whole
executive system of executive authority. First, the President has the
whole responsibility; and then, being thus responsible for all, he has,
and ought to have, the whole power. We have heard of political _units_,
and our American executive, as here represented, is indeed a _unit_. We
have a charmingly simple government! Instead of many officers, in
different departments, each having appropriate duties, and each
responsible for his own duties, we are so fortunate as to have to deal
with but one officer. The President carries on the government; all the
rest are but sub-contractors. Sir, whatever _name_ we give him, we have
but ONE EXECUTIVE OFFICER. A Briareus sits in the centre of our system,
and with his hundred hands touches every thing, moves every thing,
controls every thing. I ask, Sir, Is this republicanism? Is this a
government of laws? Is this legal responsibility?

According to the Protest, the very duties which every officer under the
government performs are the duties of the President himself. It says
that the President has a right to employ _agents_ of his _own choice_,
to aid HIM in the performance of HIS duties.

Mr. President, if these doctrines be true, it is idle for us any longer
to talk about any such thing as a government of laws. We have no
government of laws, not even the semblance or shadow of it; we have no
legal responsibility. We have an executive, consisting of one person,
wielding all official power, and which is, to every effectual purpose,
completely _irresponsible_. The President declares that he is
"responsible for the entire action of the executive department."
Responsible? What does he mean by being "responsible"? Does he mean
legal responsibility? Certainly not. No such thing. Legal responsibility
signifies liability to punishment for misconduct or maladministration.
But the Protest does not mean that the President is liable to be
impeached and punished if a secretary of state should commit treason, if
a collector of the c