Theodore Roosevelt writes to the Board of Directors of the New York County Lawyers’ Association regarding a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which would provide that no court or judge shall hereafter declare any legislative enactment unconstitutional. Roosevelt discusses the history of this power, and finds the proposed amendment to have troubling implications, but argues for a possible solution to its problems. Roosevelt quotes from Professor Thayer’s book Life of Marshall to support his arguments. Roosevelt’s main argument is that the limitations on the legislative branch of government must be more precisely defined, and some body of government must be able to give the legislature authority to act above its limitations in case of emergency, but that the courts may not be the best body for this, since this draws them necessarily into political partisanship. Roosevelt proposes instead a Constitutional Council composed of ex-judges.
Collection
Library of Congress Manuscript Division
Creation Date
1912-05-09
Creator(s)
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919