“The constitutionality and propriety of the Federal Government assuming to enter into a novel and vast field of legislation, namely, that of providing for the care and support of all those ... who by any form of calamity become fit objects of public philanthropy. ... I cannot find any authority in the Constitution for making the Federal Government the great almoner of public charity throughout the United States. To do so would, in my judgment, be contrary to the letter and spirit of the Constitution and subversive of the whole theory upon which the Union of these States is founded.”
Quote by Franklin Pierce
Author
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. His presidency was marked by economic depression and the issue of slavery. Born on November 23, 1804, he died on October 8, 1869. more