Ron Chernow Quote
The Alien Act of June 25 gave the president the power to deport, without a hearing or even a reasonable explanation, any foreign-born residents deemed dangerous to the peace. The Alien Enemies Act of July 6 granted the president the power to label as enemy aliens any residents who were citizens of a country at war with America, prompting an outflow of French émigrés. Then came the capstone of these horrendous measures: the Sedition Act of July 14, which rendered it a crime to speak or publish any false, scandalous, or malicious writings against the U.S. government or Congress with intent to defame . . . or to bring them . . . into contempt or disrepute.3 If found guilty, the perpetrators could face up to two thousand dollars in fines and two years in prison.
The Alien Act of June 25 gave the president the power to deport, without a hearing or even a reasonable explanation, any foreign-born residents deemed dangerous to the peace. The Alien Enemies Act of July 6 granted the president the power to label as enemy aliens any residents who were citizens of a country at war with America, prompting an outflow of French émigrés. Then came the capstone of these horrendous measures: the Sedition Act of July 14, which rendered it a crime to speak or publish any false, scandalous, or malicious writings against the U.S. government or Congress with intent to defame . . . or to bring them . . . into contempt or disrepute.3 If found guilty, the perpetrators could face up to two thousand dollars in fines and two years in prison.