Caesar Rodney | Biography

Caesar Augustus Rodney served as U.S. attorney general from 1807 to 1811 under Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Rodney, a staunch Republican Party member, served in a variety of state and federal government offices. As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Rodney led the fight to impeach two federal judges because they were members of the rival Federalist Party.

Rodney was born on January 4, 1772 in Dover, Delaware. Like his father, who was a prominent lawyer and judge, Rodney seemed destined for a life in the public eye. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1789, Rodney "read the law" with a Philadelphia lawyer. During this period there were no law schools to train attorneys. Instead, a man would serve an apprenticeship, performing routine clerical duties, researching the law and receiving guidance from a senior attorney. After four years of training, Rodney was admitted to the Delaware bar in 1793. He practiced law in Wilmington and New Castle for the next few years.

Though Rodney entered the practice of law he was more interested in developing a political career. After being elected to the Delaware legislature in 1796, Rodney yearned to go to Washington, D.C. In 1803 his goal was reached when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. At this period the Congress was bitterly divided between Republican and Federalist factions. After years of distrust and animosity, there was very little goodwill in the two legislative bodies. Thomas Jefferson and his Republican colleagues were convinced that Federalist judges, appointed by Presidents Washington and Adams, were treating Republicans who appeared before them in court unfairly. Matters reached a boiling point in 1806 when members of the house proposed that two of these judges be impeached.

Rodney was one of these members. As one of the leaders of the impeachment effort against Judge John Pickering and Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase, Rodney believed the men had acted unfairly and did not deserve to sit on the bench. However, Pickering's bizarre behavior was not attributable to politics but to mental illness. As for Chase, he had been an outspoken Federalist before he took the bench and remained so after he joined the Supreme Court. In this period justices rode circuit and held trials in addition to their appellate work. Rodney and other Federalists were incensed at Chase's prosecutorial demeanor at one trial involving a Republican defendant. Chase's intemperate remarks from the bench cemented the approval by the house of the articles of impeachment. Rodney served as a house manager at the senate trial, essentially acting as a prosecutor. The senate convicted Pickering but acquitted Chase. Legal historians have argued that if Chase had been convicted, the judiciary would have lost its independence and the American legal system would have become politicized.

Jefferson appointed Rodney attorney general in 1807. The office was a part time position during this period and Rodney was able to maintain a private law practice to support himself. He issued advisory opinions to the president and Congress but overall the job had little prestige or authority. When James Madison succeeded Jefferson as president in 1809 he kept Rodney in his cabinet. Rodney served until late 1811 before resigning. He later served again in the House of Representatives and in 1822 was elected to the U.S. Senate. The following year he resigned to accept an appointment as U.S. minister to Argentina. He died in Buenos Aires on June 10, 1824.