“The phrase is often linked to Niccolò Machiavelli, particularly his political treatise The Prince (1513), although he never stated it verbatim. Machiavelli argued that rulers might need to take actions that conflict with conventional morality to protect the state and achieve necessary outcome. The concept is also associated with consequentialism, a philosophical approach where the morality of an action is judged by its outcomes rather than the action itself. In Latin, theologian Hermann Busenbaum phrased it as “Cum finis set licit, etiam media sunt licita”—”when the end is lawful, the means are also lawful”. Wikipedia.
“President Abraham Lincoln suspended—but did not permanently end—the writ of habeas corpus during the Civil War. Chief Justice Roger B. Taney(of Dred Scott fame) ruled in the Ex parte Merryman case that the Constitution (Article I, Section 9) gives the power to suspend habeas corpus to Congress, not the President. Lincoln ignored this ruling, arguing the suspension was necessary to save the Union. On March 3, 1863, Congress passed the Habeas Corpus Suspension Act,” Google AI. ” This act would give Lincoln a pass on committing an illegal act!
And that is all I’m going to say about that!
Drain the Cesspool 