Nikki Haley's Civil War Remarks Spark Backlash From Conservatives

Newspeak ^ | December 28, 2023 | Khaleda Rahman

[woodpusher]

Text from the Dred Scott opinion that defines blacks as never having a chance to be citizens.

A free negro of the African race, whose ancestors were brought to this country and sold as slaves, is not a "citizen" within the meaning of the Constitution of the United States.

Here the line of distinction is drawn in express words. Persons of color, in the judgment of Congress, were not included in the word citizens, and they are described as another and different class of persons, and authorized to be employed, if born in the United States.

And these rights are of a character and weald lead to consequences, which make it absolutely certain that the African race were not included under the name of citizens of a State, and were not in the contemplation of the framers of the Constitution when these privileges and immunities were provided for the protection of the citizen in other States.

Thus, in multiple places of the Dred Scott decision, the Dim majority SCOTUS wrote that blacks ain't never gonna be naturalized citizens and have the rights of citizens. It was a shot across the bow to the abolitionists trying to win at the state level, that the Dims decided otherwise at the federal level. Thus, the Christian abolitionists (Republicans) changed tactics to try to win at the federal level through Congress. Which is what the Dims feared with Republicans taking over Congress and the WH in the 1860 election.

As none of that secured a majority vote, none of it was an opinion of the Court.

It was dictum of Chief Justice Taney, responding to the barrage of dicta written by Justice Curtis.

The reason why freedmen could never be citizens under then current law was that none could be eligible for naturalization. Making them free did not make them citizens. Naturalization was a process that took place subsequent to birth to bestow citizenship upon an alien. But the freedmen were not aliens. 14A was needed to make the freedmen citizens.

If was not a shot across the bow of anyone. Slaves set free in the free states did not become citizens of the state, or of the United States.

Scott was dismissed for want of jurisdiction. The lower court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case, and Scotus remanded the case to the Circuit court with instructions for that court to dismiss for want of jurisdiction. Jurisidiction determines the power to hear and determine a case. The decision was that the right and power to hear and determine the case did not exist.

"MANDATE. a judicial command; especially, an official mode of communicating the judgment of the appellate court to the lower court."

[Fury]

Scott was dismissed for want of jurisdiction.

It’s unfortunate that Taney did not leave it at that. Instead, he went kitchen sink. And as you note, Taney then responded to Curtis. I’ve always thought that Curtis knew what buttons to push of Taney.