Alexander Stephens' Constitution

Alexander Stephens was a sickly man throughout his life. Even though he was one of the leading lawyers and politicians of Georgia he was often mistaken for a boy. Never weighing more than ninety five pounds his body was so small and frail, his face so pale and bony that he always looked as though he’d just risen from his death bed. However, through sheer intensity he rose to become one of the most highly respected intellectuals and philosophers of government that the country ever produced.

On January 2, 1861 the people of Georgia were given the opportunity to go to the polls and vote for politicians who either claimed to be in favor of "immediate secession" or "co-operationist" (pro union). The exact results of the election, in terms of total votes cast for each side statewide, will probably never be known as there were many voting irregularities, and some of the delegate candidates held ambiguous positions. In effect the election was rigged to elect a majority of disunionists. Four months later Secessionist Governor Joseph E. Brown released an unofficial count showing a lopsided victory for the secessionists as 50,243 in favor of secession to 37,123 against. In reality the results were much closer. In 1972 the Georgia Historical Society attempted to recreate the vote and concluded that the final vote on January 2, 1861 was actually 42,744 in favor of co-operation and 41,717 in favor of immediate secession.

During the convention discussion Stephens was the most ardent and eloquent spokesman against the disunion movement but his aruements were in vain since the issue was already decided. The elected delegates cast two votes, a "test" vote on January 18, and a secession vote on January 19. Both votes were strongly pro-secession and the resolution was adopted by a vote of 165 to 130.

Stephens was so upset at the results that he refused to go to the Confederate Convention in Montgomery as a delegate from Georgia. Finally, he agreed to go but only on his terms. He insisted that unless Georgia agreed to his resolutions he was going home. Stephens’ resolutions provided that any Constitution adopted should be based upon that of the United States Constitution. All the essentials should remain the same with only minor alterations in detail as the situation required. Georgia agreed and unanimously approved Stephens’ resolutions.

So important was the State of Georgia to the new Confederacy and so renown was Stephens that he had almost a free hand in writing the new Constitution. First of all, the Confederate Constitution permanently protected the institution of slavery which was of course, the entire reason for secession. But Stephens went further. Disgusted with the wasteful pork-barrel spending of Congress he inserted a couple of clauses that addressed the issue;

1. “Congress shall appropriate no money from the Treasury except by a vote of two-thirds of both Houses, unless it be asked and estimated for by one of the heads of departments and submitted to Congress by the President; except for the purpose of paying its own expenses and contingencies”

2. “The President may approve any appropriation and disapprove any other appropriation in the same bill. In such case he shall, in signing the bill, designate the appropriations disapproved; and shall return a copy of such appropriations, with his objections, to the House in which the bill shall have originated; and the same proceedings shall then be had as in case of other bills disapproved by the President.”

This ‘line-item veto’ took away the Congress’ favorite tactic of giving the President no choice but to either shut down the government or approve billions of wasteful spending. One has to wonder: with a deficit of 1.75 trillion dollars being recently approved by Congress if it isn’t time we adopt Alec Stephens' clauses as amendments to the Constitution.