Opinion swiftly turned against Blaine ; the June 3 '' The New York Times '' carried the headline " Blaine 's Nomination Now Out of the Question . " Blaine took his case to the House floor on June 5 , theatrically proclaiming his innocence and calling the investigation a partisan attack by Southern Democrats , revenge for his exclusion of Jefferson Davis from the amnesty bill of the previous year . He read selected passages from the letters aloud , saying " Thank God Almighty , I am not afraid to show them ! " Blaine even succeeded in extracting an apology from the committee chairman . The political tide turned anew in Blaine 's favor . But now the pressure had begun to affect Blaine 's health , and he collapsed while leaving church services on June 14 . His opponents called the collapse a political stunt , with one Democratic newspaper reporting the event as " Blaine Feigns a Faint . " Rumors of Blaine 's ill health combined with the lack of hard evidence against him garnered him sympathy among Republicans , and when the Republican convention began in Cincinnati later that month , he was again seen as the front-runner
Republican convention
1876 Republican National Convention
James G. Blaine