What provisions in the U.S. Constitution are relevant to the debate over the Sedition Act?
What arguments were offered in Congress for and against the Sedition Act?
Learning Objectives
After completing this lesson, students will be able to:
Discuss the provisions in the Constitution that supported the arguments against the Sedition Act.
Discuss the provisions in the Constitution that supported the belief that Congress had the power to pass the Sedition Act.
Cite objections to the Sedition Act.
Cite arguments in favor of the Sedition Act.
For this activity, students will read brief excerpts from actual debates in the House of Representatives as the legislators attempted to work with the version of the bill "Punishment of Crime" (later known as the Sedition Act) already passed by the Senate.
Those who opposed the Sedition Act were convinced it was unconstitutional, but the question of its constitutionality was never tested in court, although a number of newspaper editors were accused of and tried for sedition (see Lesson Five). There was great disagreement as to whether the Sedition Act had violated the First Amendment, yet similar acts were passed into law again during World War I. In times of war or imminent danger, it is difficult to balance security needs with personal freedom.
1. Review with the class the relevant sections of the Constitution and Bill of Rights available on the EDSITEment resource The Avalon Project:
Use the following in guiding students' review of the relevant constitutional provisions:
Note that the Founding Fathers recognized that times of war or imminent danger did call for exceptions to otherwise guaranteed rights. For example, an exception to the habeas corpus rule (the right to request a determination that someone being detained has been lawfully imprisoned) in Section 9, #2, states "unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it."
In what way, if any, does Article 1 give Congress the power to pass a measure like the Alien and Sedition Acts? In what way, if any, does Article 1 limit the power of Congress to pass a measure like the Alien and Sedition Acts?
Keep in mind that the Constitution does not provide for the court to review of a law before it goes into effect (and the concept of judicial review itself was not formally established until the Marbury v. Madison decision in 1803). In 1798, the First Amendment was rather new and had not yet undergone years of judicial interpretation.
Make sure students understand that not all speech is protected and that our understanding of what speech is and is not protected has been refined by judicial interpretation since 1798. There is still no precise definition of what is and is not protected speech. There was even less agreement in 1798. The Sedition Act and the reaction to it did, however, help to clarify our understanding of the First Amendment.
What parts of the First Amendment might those who objected to the Alien and Sedition Acts have referred to in their arguments?
The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...." Does that wording imply that the states were free to place restrictions on speech and press?
2. Assign to each student or to pairs of students one excerpt from the handout "Excerpts from the Debate in the House of Representatives" on pages 7-10 of the PDF file (see Preparing to Teach This Curriculum Unit for download instructions). Give students a few minutes to understand their assigned excerpts and to practice reading them with meaning. Then have the students read their assigned quotes aloud in numerical order. Take time between each reading to discuss what the speaker is saying. Is he for or against the Sedition Act? What is the thrust of his argument? If desired, students can use the chart(s) "The Thrust of the Arguments," on pages 11-12 of the PDF file (see Preparing to Teach This Curriculum Unit for download instructions)— or have them use the Interactive Version, to organize the various positions; consider reviewing the various arguments with the class before you start. Pair students to track the pro and con arguments respectively. Supporters of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison believed the Sedition Act was designed to repress political opposition. Does anything in the debates in the House support that accusation?
3. Share with students the results of the vote in the House from the page in the Annals of Congress in which The Debate Concludes and a Vote Is Taken, available on the EDSITEment-reviewed website American Memory. The Sedition Act passed by a vote of 44 to 41. Students can use the Search the Biographical Dictionary function of the EDSITEment resource Congress Link to find the party affiliation and a brief biography of anyone who voted that day.
If desired, as an extension to the lesson, students can follow the progress of the bill in the Senate, using these documents from the EDSITEment-reviewed website American Memory:
Use the Search
the Biographical Dictionary function of the EDSITEment resource Congress
Link to find the party affiliation and a brief biography of any or all of
those who took part in the vote.
Assessment
Students should be able to respond thoughtfully to the following questions:
What were the arguments in favor of the Sedition Act?
What were the arguments against passage of the Sedition Act?
What factors, such as partisan loyalties, influenced the debate and the final vote? Students should offer evidence to support their conclusions.
There was a genuine threat to the U.S. in 1798. The young Republic was very likely
to be drawn into the conflict in Europe. There was a genuine concern that agents
of foreign powers were active in the U.S. In a free society, such threats force
us to strike a balance between security and freedom. Discuss this balance and
why it is difficult to achieve. Have students summarize the essence of the pro
and con arguments in the Sedition Act debate in one paragraph each.
Journal
of the Senate June 23, 1798 (Sedition bill will be introduced.)
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hlaw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(sj002656))]
Journal
of the Senate June 26, 1798 (Should the bill be
allowed on the floor?)
[http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/hlaw:@field
(DOCID+@lit(sj002658))]
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