Who?  President Rutherford B. Hayes, that's who!  Fortunately for collectors, the coalition of political interests that had pushed the Bland-Allison Act of 1878 through Congress authorizing the manufacture of the coin had enough votes to override his veto.                                                                                                          For most of us who lived through the Presidential election in November of 2000, it seemed the electoral process had gone mad.  The Supreme Court of Florida, the U.S. Supreme Court and various other judicial, legislative, and lobbying entities wrangled furiously for weeks over chads, counts, recounts, ballots, voting machines, voter disenfranchisement, majority rule and the Electoral College process itself.  It was jokingly suggested that if all of these factions couldn't choose a President, then Bill Clinton would just have to stay in office for another four years!  What do these events over a 100 years separated in time have to do with each other?  Let me tell you.

      As fractious and divisive as the Bush/Gore election was, it was nothing compared to the FIVE MONTHS of jockeying that it took to get Hayes into office in 1877 so he could veto our beloved Morgan dollar the next year.  Hayes was the former two-term Governor of Ohio and a major general in the Union army.  When the votes were counted and no outcome was conclusively decided, the in-fighting began.  Hayes' Republican party contested the outcome of ballots in four states in the courts, including Florida and Louisiana.  The Electoral College could not settle the question and it was left to the Senate to vote.  Only by a convoluted compromise could Democratic Senators from La. be convinced to vote for him.  In return, it was agreed that Federal troops stationed there since the Civil War would be removed and 'home rule' as it was called would be restored.  Additionally, a huge commitment to build southern railroads was included in the deal.  Hayes distanced himself from this fray, never speaking publicly about the dispute and personally making no promises to any party involved.  He never even went to Washington to deal with the situation at all!  As a footnote, his veto of the Bland-Allison Act was based on his hard money belief that only gold should be used to back currency. Hayes left office after one term as President when he decided not to run for re-election.                                                 I would like to acknowledge the four excellent guides written by gfl* on the subject of GSA Carson City dollars for inspiring this trip into numismatic, economic, and political history.  Go read his guides.  It will be well worth your time.  Oh, and take just a second to vote for this guide and other guides that writers take great pains and effort to help all eBayers make this site better.  It is ridiculous that less than 10% of readers even bother to vote.  PS