By Stockton

As our Republic slips away, I was reminded of a quote I had read years ago. It took just a few minutes of digging to find that quote.

Samuel Chase was the only Supreme Court Justice ever impeached. It was a political impeachment (as all are), the Democrat-Republican Jefferson trying to remove the Federalist Chase.

Vice-President Aaron Burr presided over the trial. He did so with such fairness and so correct an adherence to procedure that what began as a political inquest ended as a memorable example of judicial procedure at it's best. Even his critics agreed.

Burr, said one newspaper account: performed his duties "with the dignity and impartiality of an angel, but with the rigour of a devil."

The day after the acquittal of Justice Chase, Burr spoke one last time on the Senate floor. He spoke of the Senate as "a sanctuary; a citadel of law, of order and of liberty...."

He went on to say:

...and if the Constitution be destined ever to perish by the sacrilegious hands of the demagogue or the usurper, which God avert, its expiring agonies will be witnessed on this floor."

We think that day has come and, Burr was correct, those expiring agonies were witnessed on the Senate floor.

I've always held the Senate in much higher regard than any other part of our government. Even after we amended the Constitution to provide for direct election of senators, the Senate, on the whole, seemed a higher caliber than the house.

Sure, there was partisanship and silliness in the Senate years ago, like now. But, I wonder if we'd be in this same situation today if our Senators had names like Humphrey, Mondale, Dirksen, Baker, Ribicoff, Muskie, Hatfield...

Of all the recent failures, I think the Senate's is the greatest. They have stood silent as we head down the path to Empire. Shame on you.