At the start of the "lame duck" session of the Thirty-Ninth Congress, U.S. Senator George Williams of Oregon introduced the Tenure of Office Act, a bill Republicans had crafted to limit the ability of President Johnson to dictate policy by removing officials from office without the consent of the legislative branch. Both houses initially passed the measure before the end of the year but disagreement over the inclusion of certain officials, specifically members of the Cabinet, that the lower House stood firm upon, delayed the final passage of the bill until February 19, 1867. As expected, President Johnson rejected the bill but both chambers easily over-rode his veto on the same day, March 2, 1867 and the bill became what would be a very important law during the Fortieth Congress. (By John Osborne).
William MacDonald (ed.), Documentary Source Book of American History, 1606-1913 (New York: Macmillan Company, 1920), 504-507.
