In late 1839, Joseph Smith and Elias Higbee traveled to Washington, D.C., to plead the cause of the people of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The Latter-day Saints were seeking asylum in Illinois after having been driven from Missouri.
Approximately one year before Smith’s and Higbee’s trip, the Latter-day Saints had surrendered to Missouri troops after Gov. Lilburn W. Boggs issued orders that “Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the state if necessary for the public peace.”
After pleading their case to President Martin Van Buren, he infamously responded: “Gentlemen, your cause is just, but I can do nothing for you.