Speech of Hon. R. Barnwell Rhett, on the Reference of the President's Message. Delivered in the House of Representatives of the U. S. in Committee of the Whole, February 1, 1848.

Original publisher's beige paper wrappers. Text printed in black ink. No date, circa 1848. 5 3/4" x 9." Sixteen pages, complete. Pages are clean and intact except for a small loss of text (a few words) in the footnote of Page 8 which appears to have been from the original printing process, slight age toning throughout, small occasional spots of foxing or discoloration, and slight chipping and moderate splitting along spine. A Very Good copy. A speech that was originally delivered before the United States House of Representatives on February 1, 1848 by Robert Barnwell Rhett (1800-1876), an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative from South Carolina from 1837-1849 and a U.S. Senator from South Carolina from 1850-1852. He was a Democrat and a staunch advocate of slavery and secession. In this speech, Rhett defends President James K. Polk and his order to march troops to the border of the Rio Grande in Texas which was a pivotal factor in the onset of the Mexican-American War. Most of Rhett's speech is his interpretation of constitutional law and laws relating to checks and balances of the legislative and executive branches. He discusses what powers are granted to the president and Congress. Specifically, Rhett argues that Polk acted within his right because he views the Executive as the "war-making" power. Whigs had lambasted Polk for his ordering of the troops because they argued that he overstepped his boundaries in that war could only be declared by Congress. However, Rhett counters that Congress is merely the "war-declaring" power, not the "war-making" power, and views the declaration of war as separate from the prosecution of war, the latter of which he states is in the domain of the president. Rhett also adds that he viewed the clash between U.S. and Mexican forces on the Rio Grande as not being an act of war at all and more of a "skirmish.".…