The Decision of 1789 refers to a month-long constitutional debate that occurred during the first session of the United States House of Representatives as to whether Article Two of the United States Constitution granted the president the power to remove officers of the United States at will. It has been called "the first significant legislative construction of the Constitution".[1] The debate occurred after the proposed creation of three executive departments, the Department of the Treasury, Department of War, and Department of Foreign Affairs. Most of the debate focused on the proposal to create a Department of Foreign Affairs—the precursor to the Department of State—and which branch of government would have the power to remove officers from that department.[1]
Congress ultimately enacted three departmental acts that contained similar language, none of which contained language expressly granting the President removal power, but instead discussed the custody of departmental papers after a department secretary "shall be removed from office by the President of the United States".[2][1] Nonetheless, one of those acts included a proviso urged by James Madison that many scholars believe "was meant to imply recognition that the Secretary would be removable by the President at will".[3] Justices of the Supreme Court and legal scholars continue to debate the legal significance of the decision.[1][4] The traditional view held by legal scholars is that the Decision conveyed a presidential power under the Constitution to remove officials, while a revisionist view believes that there was no consensus on removal power.[1]