That was after Lincoln had dissolved the Constitution on 27 April 1861 with his suspension of the constitutional right of habeas corpus — unquestionably one of the most important of our civil liberties, for it prohibits government from making arrests without just cause, that is, from locking people up and throwing the key away, so to speak. In time, more than 10,000 were arrested and imprisoned by military officers, often for crimes that never existed in any law book, manufactured by the generals.
That, and Lincoln's suspension of state/local government in Maryland, where in late 1861 he had soldiers arrest and imprison the members of the legislature believed to be Southern sympathizers who might vote for Maryland’s secession. Democratic government ceased in Maryland for the duration of the war.
Oh, and Lincoln's order to arrest the chief justice of the US Supreme Court for having the gall to give orders to the president in ex parte Merryman and to condemn Lincoln's acts against the Constitution. And remember: Taney was simply doing his duty, as under the Constitution the Supreme Court has the final say on Constitutional issues, not the president, not the Congress, not anyone else.
Lincoln was saved the condemnation of history, possibly impeachment and removal from office as well, by a reluctant federal marshal who wisely refrained from arresting the chief justice of the United States. But notwithstanding the failure to arrest the chief justice, this episode marked the end of constitutional government in the United States, as a British periodical, Macmillan Magazine, observed in 1862:
There is no Parliamentary (congressional) authority whatever for what has been done. It has been done simply on Mr. Lincoln’s fiat. At his simple bidding, acting by no authority but his own pleasure, in plain defiance of the provisions of the Constitution, the Habeas Corpus Act has been suspended, the press muzzled, and judges prevented by armed men from enforcing on the citizens’ behalf the laws to which they and the President alike have sworn.
lHyperbole aside, the Constitution clearly states that habeas corpus may be suspended when in the event of invasion or rebellion the public safety requires it. That is hardly dissolving the entire Constitution, that's abiding by it.
Those members of the legislature were advocating joining an armed rebellion currently underway against the government. At the very least they were formenting treason. They're damned lucky they spent only a few weeks in jail.
Oh, and Lincoln's order to arrest the chief justice of the US Supreme Court for having the gall to give orders to the president in ex parte Merryman and to condemn Lincoln's acts against the Constitution. And remember: Taney was simply doing his duty, as under the Constitution the Supreme Court has the final say on Constitutional issues, not the president, not the Congress, not anyone else.
Complete nonsense. Taney was never arrested, Lincoln never ordered his arrest, and the Chief Justice remained on the Bench until his death.
Lincoln was saved the condemnation of history, possibly impeachment and removal from office as well, by a reluctant federal marshal who wisely refrained from arresting the chief justice of the United States.
The only proof you can offer that this occured is that "reluctant federal marshal's" ghost written memoirs. It's vey noteworthy that none of Lincoln's biographers and, more importantly, none of Taney's biographers recount this in their books. The reason being, according to one of them, is that there is no evidence to support it.
Got any other whoppers you want to repeat?