[WhiskeyPapa]

My only point is that he had a plausible good faith argument that under the unusual and dangerous exigencies of April 1861 (i.e. the Capitol itself being imminently threatened by Confederates and their operatives who essentially had the place surrounded), he could properly and Constitutionally suspend habeas corpus.

Of course he did.

President Lincoln pointed out that Andrew Jackson suspended the Writ in and around New Orleans in 1814 when he wasn't even president!

He was however, the executive in that area. When Jackson was later fined by a judge he had arrested, Congress voted to refund this money to him with interest.

Surely that says something about how people felt about this in a time of less than instant communications.

Walt

[ravinson]

President Lincoln pointed out that Andrew Jackson suspended the Writ in and around New Orleans in 1814 when he wasn't even president!

Excellent point. Do you think we'll ever see one of the Confederate glorifiers publishing a book trashing Andrew Jackson?