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1835 Andrew Jackson - Jackson's "SECRET" Request for Military Funding - The lost Fortifications Bill

In 1835, partisan bickering and political shenanigans led to the failure of a much needed fortifications bill. On March 3rd, the Jacksonian controlled house passed the bill with an amendment to include an additional funding of $3 million for naval and military operations. The Senate rejected the amendment and sent the bill back to the House, but instead of negotiating, the House adjourned because members refused to commit to a quorum after midnight.  If this weren't bad enough, accusations of fraud and foul play were hurled when President Jackson reported to Congress that he had supported the amendment all along. If President Jackson supported the amendment, why did the House not take further action? In response, Congressman Henry Wise of Virginia, a member of the opposing Whig party took to the floor of Congress, and accused the Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, James K. Polk, the Chairman of Foreign Affairs Churchill C. Cambreling of keeping the President's desire a Secret. A secret desire for additional military funding!

Nine months after the bill failed, President Andrew Jackson's shared his intentions to include the amendment in his 1835 State of the Union address. He complained of the loss of the fortifications bill and noted with exception his support of what was known as the Three Millions amendment.

"Much loss and inconvenience have been experienced in consequence of the failure of the bill containing the ordinary appropriations for fortifications which passed one branch of the National Legislature at the last session, but was lost in the other. This failure was the more regretted not only because it necessarily interrupted and delayed the progress of a system of national defense, projected immediately after the last war and since steadily pursued, but also because it contained a contingent appropriation, inserted in accordance with the views of the Executive, in aid of this important object and other branches of the national defense, some portions of which might have been most usefully applied during the past season. I invite your early attention to that part of the report of the Secretary of War which relates to this subject, and recommend an appropriation sufficiently liberal to accelerate the armament of the fortifications agreeably to the proposition submitted by him, and to place our whole Atlantic seaboard in a complete state of defense. A just regard to the permanent interests of the country evidently requires this measure, but there are also other reasons which at the present juncture give it peculiar force and make it my duty to call to the subject your special consideration."  

When the message was delivered to the House of Representatives, it started a political firestorm.  There were calls to form a committee and begin an investigation into the matter, but one Whig man from Virginia, Congressman Henry Wise saw no need for an investigation, he had "record evidence" (the Congressional journal) and the "truth necessary for a verdict and conviction".  On January 22nd 1836, Wise stood on the floor of Congress and accused the new speaker of the House, James K. Polk, the new chairman of the House and Ways Committee Churchill Cambreling and the President of the United States of keeping a "secret recommendation".  In his full speech on the floor, Mr. Wise accused Polk and Cambreling of purposely delaying the bill in conference where "it died, strangled by fraud and foul play".  On March 3rd, 1835 the amendment entitled the "three millions amendment" was brought to the House of Representatives for a full vote.  The amendment appropriated $3 million to be spent in whole or in part under the direction of the President for military or naval service including fortifications. The House concurred with the committee and sent the bill as amended to the Senate. The Senate quickly reported back to the House, that they disagreed with the amendment and requested the House to recede from it. As the evening waned, the Senate and House entered conference and the bill was not returned to the House until sometime after midnight. At this point, a minority of Whig (anti-Jacksonian) members of Congress refused to agree to a quorum, arguing that they could not vote after midnight for reason of "conscientious scruples". To make matters worse, many of those declining had just minutes earlier voted on a bill on the Cumberland road.  Magically, as soon as the appropriations bill came out of conference, their "scruples" kicked in and they could no longer vote. For months, everyone believed that this was just President Andrew Jackson's men trying to kill the amendment, but when Jackson declared in his State of the Union that the amendment was "in accordance with the views of the Executive", all hell broke loose. Now on the floor of the House, Mr. Wise was accusing the new Speaker of the House and future president, James K. Polk of misleading Congress.

"We have arrived at the solemn fact-half admitted and fully proved- that, at the last session, the chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means (Polk) was informed and knew that the president of the United States desired an appropriation of THREE MILLIONS of dollars for MILITARY AND NAVAL SERVICE; that he never communicated it to his committee or to the House of Representatives; but whispered it, as A SECRET, to a few members in their seats, desiring them to 'say nothing about' the fact that such was the desire of the President !!"

Mr. Wise did not know why Polk would keep such a secret, or why the Fortification bill should fail, but he suggested that it must have been done for some greater purpose.  Reading Mr. Wise's speech, I sense a bit of sarcasm as he accuses the Speaker of keeping a secret to prevent some "greater mischief".  Rhetorically, Mr. Wise asked, "Can any gentleman give me a reason why the 'views' and wishes of the Executive were not made known?".  Was there some great war the country was headed into?  Was there some secret mission the President was up to?  Wise, urged the speaker "if a despotism is to be sprung upon us, for mercy's sake let it be known, that we may strike it down or escape from it!"  Mr. Wise confessed that he was "bewildered and amazed" and could conceive of no conduct so "reprehensible, so odious, so abominable!" then to keep a secret the executive's desire to increase military funding from any "patriot in Congress".   

References

Presidency.ucsb.edu. 2020. Seventh Annual Message | The American Presidency Project. [online] Available at: <https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/seventh-annual-message-2> [Accessed 17 November 2020].

Wise, 1., 2020. Speech Of Mr. Wise, Of Virginia, On The Causes Of The Loss Of The Fortification Bill Of Last Session :. [online] Core.ac.uk. Available at: <https://core.ac.uk/display/66144692> [Accessed 17 November 2020].


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