Ethics in ServiceTaft, William H. (William Howard)
Philosophy
Ethics in Service
Taft, William H. (William Howard)
Legal ethics; Presidents -- United States; United States -- Politics and government
Another indirect power of the President as Commander-in-Chief was
exhibited in a most remarkable way during the Spanish War. We took over
successively Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippines, but for three years
after we had annexed the Philippines, Congress took no action in regard
to any of them. They formed territory ceded to us by virtue of the
Treaty of Paris and Congress thought the Philippines were a poker that
was a little bit hot for it to handle. The responsibility for them,
therefore, fell upon the President, and as Commander-in-Chief he
introduced a quasi-civil government, appointing a civil governor and
commission, whom he authorized to pass laws--subject to veto of the
Secretary of War--and to enforce them. He thus carried on a complete
government in Porto Rico, Cuba and the Philippines under his power as
Commander-in-Chief until Congress became sufficiently advised to enact
needed legislation for their government. Cuba was turned over to her
people, a Republic was set going. Then after several years,
circumstances made it necessary for us to step in and take Cuba again.
They had gotten into a row, as they frequently do in those
Latin-American countries, and they were having a revolution.
When we first let Cuba go, we made what was called the Platt Amendment
to the Cuban Treaty, suggested by Senator Platt of this state. That
amendment provided for the restoration of order by the United States
whenever law and order were disturbed and whenever life, liberty and
property were not secure. Mr. Roosevelt, therefore, sent me down to Cuba
with Mr. Bacon to see if we could not adjust the matter. When we
arrived, we found twenty thousand revolutionist troops outside the city
of Havana. President Palma had been so certain of peace that he had made
no provision to suppress insurrections, and these troops were just about
ready to march into Havana when I got there. I went out to stay at the
house of the American Minister in a suburb just between the lines, and
we did what we could to compose the situation. In those countries when
they have a revolution, the first thing they do is to elect generals.
The next thing they do is to determine what the uniform of the generals
shall be, and then they get the guns and last of all they organize.
President Palma became discouraged and resigned so that I had to
proclaim myself Provisional Governor of Cuba. The Platt Amendment said
that the United States could go into Cuba to preserve order; but the
question was whether the President had the authority to go in without
authorization by a resolution of Congress. I always thought that he had
and Congress seemed to agree to it. So we went in, established a
provisional government, passed a good election law, held an election
and, at the end of a year, turned back the government to the Cubans,
where it now is.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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