Speech #550168539

Certainly not. Each of the States had a perfect government of its own. exercising every conceivable power an independent government could exercise. except in those cases where the States granted power to the General Government. and where by the adoption of the Constitution they had restrained themselves from the exercise of power. in other words. when the Government of the United States was created. the thirteen original States carved out of their otherwise unrestricted sovereignty certain powers which they conferred on the General Government. and restrained themselves from the exercise of certain other powers. and with those exceptions each State today can exercise all the power of the most independent and absolute government of earth. And who is bold enough to deny that the inhabitants of newly acquired territory fall within the language and purpose of the fourteenth amendment of the Constitution. which declares that "All persons borh or naturalized in the United States. and subject to the jurisdiction thereof. are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside?" If the Philippine Islands are to be annexed to the United States. would not their inhabitants "be subject to the jurisdiction thereof" and consequently "citizens of the United States." and as such entitled to all "the privileges and immunities thereof? " Mr. President. the hour when the Senate under its unanimousconsent agreement is to pass into executive session to vote on the treaty is rapidly drawing near. Other Senators desire to speak upon this question before that hour. and I must necessarily be brief in the remarks I am to make. but I can not resist the temptation of calling attention to a remarkable statement of the senior Senator from Ohio in his speech the other day. when he declared that the Declaration of Independence was simply a bill of complaint. or a bill enumerating certain grievances against the British Crown.