superphest

History Lesson: April 15th, 1861, President Lincoln invoked the Insurrection Act to circumvent posse comitatus, in response to Fort Sumter. Then 12 days later, Lincoln unilaterally suspended the writ of habeas corpus while Congress was out of session (important), citing that he had to act immediately without Congressional approval, in order to suppress the rebellion and defend the public. Then a few weeks later, in May 1861, a Circuit Court judge ruled that President Lincoln did not have the authority to suspend habeas corpus. Lincoln refused to comply with the ruling, and both he and the Military continued to do what was necessary. Lincoln then proceeded to do what he wanted without Congressional approval for almost two years, until Congress approved that he could suspend habeas corpus, whenever POTUS judged that public safety required it, and this stayed in effect throughout the war. Lincoln pretty much told the judiciary to fuck off, and he told Congress that he had to act and could not wait for them, and honestly didn’t really need them. Lincoln was going to save the Republic during times of “rebellion or invasion”, and there wasn’t a damn thing anyone was going to do to stop him. Food for thought (especially the part about Congress being out of session opening the door for POTUS to act).