AMERICAN PROBLEMS by WILLIAM E.BORAH 1924

294 WILLIAM E. BORAH
of the English government upon the American
colonies. (Applause.)
But there is
a peculiar doctrine which has
come to have recognition in this country to
which I must refer. It was said during the
late war that as soon as war was declared the
Constitution of the United States was in a
sense suspended, that the Congress could pass
any law it saw fit to pass. At first, that seemed
to me to be a subject of amusement, and I still
really think it is. But as a matter of fact, it
was seriously advocated by learned and able
men, legislators and executive departments.
It was upon that theory and apparently upon
that principle that many things were done during
the war. For myself, I want to repudiate
it once and for all. I trust that no such vicious
and un-American doctrine will ever be seriously
considered by the people of this country.
There is only one way that you can change the
Constitution of the United States or suspend
any of its provisions, and that is, in the same
way and by the same power that made it, to
wit, the people of the United States themselves
in the manner pointed out by the Constitution.
(Applause.) Every clause, every line, every
paragraph, of that Great Charter obtains in
time of war just the same as in time of peace.