Tariff Of Abominations Essay

Andrew Jackson issued the Proclamation to the people of South Carolina that disputed the states’ rights to nullify a federal law. The Proclamation was written in response to an Ordinance issued by the South Carolina convention that declared that the tariff act

The Nullification Crisis of November 1832 was triggered by a disagreement among South Carolina and The United States. The dispute derived from the Tariff of 1828, which was created during John Quincy Adams presidency, which designed to protect the industries in the northern United States, however the tariff was unfavorable among southern states and parts of New England because it did not benefit their economy. In 1832 a new tariff was created by Andrew Jackson’s administration to lower the previous Tariff of 1828, however South Carolina disapproved of this, because of this they decided to nullify the tariff. John Calhoun of South Carolina, and vice president to Jackson also believed in the nullification of the tariffs. Jackson expressed to

The Tariff of 1832 reduced tariffs even further but again it was to no avail. South Carolina felt that the tariffs were unauthorized by the constitution deeming them null and void. In 1832 South Carolina quit collecting federal tariff duties and formed a state militia to protect the state (Tindall & Shi, 2013). In that same year President Andrew Jackson wrote the Proclamation of Nullification in which it disputes a states’ right to nullify a federal law.

South Carolina wanted to nullify a federal law which was refusing to pay federal tariffs and by doing so South Carolina is going against the constitution. Jackson viewed that South Carolina was misusing

At this time, Jacksonian Democrats had dubbed themselves guardians of the United States Constitution. Andrew Jackson himself did his best when it came to acting like a guardian of the United States Constitution, but for the most part he only upheld it when it benefitted him, his popularity, or was in accordance to his own beliefs. In 1832, President Jackson signed the Tariff of 1832 into law. This tariff was to compromise for the Tariff of 1828, and it gained the support of most northerners and half of the southerners in Congress. South Carolina, however, was not pleased with the reduction and declared, through the Nullification Ordinance, that the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832 be nullified in South Carolina because they were unconstitutional. When the vice president at the time John Calhoun voiced his support for

It raised the prices of British goods which were usually cheaper than U.S goods. John Randolph, a Jeffersonian Republican Congressman, stated that the Tariff of 1816 government violated true republican principles (Document H). John Randolph says Madison is similar to John Adams who called for the Alien and Sedition Acts which Madison was completely against. Madison even wrote the Virginia Revolution because he was furious about the Alien and Sedition Acts and in the Virginia Revolution he states that the states should have the right to declare a law unconstitutional since they created the federal government (Document C). This tariff also did not follow a strict construction of the Constitution like Madison did before his presidency. Instead it followed a loose construction of the Constitution which is what Federalist believe in. Earlier in 1812, John Adams had said that Madison had his vote in the election because he believed that he would restore taxes that shouldn’t have been repealed (Document G). This shows how the Federalist John Adams supported Madison because he shared some similar views about taxes with

In 1828, President Adams signed into law the “The tariff of 1828” which created a split of the North and South who opposed it claiming it favored one side more than the other. In 1832, Jackson responded to the crisis and national divide by enacting the tariff of 1832. His response still left a large amount of southern states unsatisfied and continued to threaten succession. Eventually, Jackson and congress responded by passing the “Compromise tariff” which resolved the Nullification crisis by gradually lowering the price of tariffs over the next ten

Jackson believed that the United States should be as independant as possible and that it should not rely on other foreign powers such as Britain for goods. This prompted Jackson to pass the Federal Tariff act of 1828. The Federal Tariff act taxed imports that primarily focused on machine goods. South Carolina had no factory industry, as a result it relied on foreign factory goods. South Carolina protested the act and threatened Jackson with nullification.

The South, however, was harmed directly by having to pay higher prices on goods the region did not produce, and indirectly because reducing the exportation of British goods to the U.S. made it difficult for the British to pay for the cotton they imported from the South. (Citation) The Tariff of 1833 was then put into place as a resolution for the tariff of abominations, which gradually reduced the tax over a ten year

State’s rights were the main interest of John C. Calhoun during the nullification crisis. He argued that states had the right to nullify a law or an act passed by the government, such as a tariff, and render it void. Through a convention held in South Carolina discord arose as the result of the convention clearly expressed that the tariff’s taxes were not to be collected within that state. Although it was Calhoun that approved the convention’s ruling, it was the majority that favored the idea of stronger state’s rights, and the ability to nullify what they viewed as unconstitutional. Consequently this resulted in a swift response from Jackson in the form of the Force Bill, allowing the use of military to enforce the acts in South

The 1828 Tariffs, which were taxes on goods imported from other countries, made imported goods more expensive. This new law obliterated the south, because there were no factories only farming, as they were not producers, and slaves were the only sources of income. It instead profitably assisted factories, which were primarily in the north, by reducing British competition in the south causing the abrupt halt on foreign trade and increased market prices. President Jackson felt nullification was necessary, but not the approach that S. Carolina took to it because it was a state. Jackson ignored the Supreme Court in Worchester v. Georgia, but he was in fact a southerner making his “PROCLAMATION, stating (his) views of the Constitution” telling South Carolina, another southern state, that if they tried to nullify those tariffs; then he was all powerful and willing to use military force in order “to defend the patriotism of the people,” and “preserve this bond of our political existence from destruction, to maintain inviolate this state of national honor and prosperity, and to justify the confidence” in going to war for his overall

In preventing the tariff from happening, it appeared that Jackson was enabling dependency on foreign, European countries. “Without the protective tariff...America would always remain in a colonial relationship to Europe…[and] would leave America unable to provide its own means of defense…” (Watson, 113). However, this does not prove hypocrisy on Jackson’s part. Instead, it highlights his priorities, and it is evident that Jackson prioritized preservation of the Union over immediate independence. The controversy surrounding the tariff was escalating alarmingly. South Carolina politicians felt increasingly cornered by the possibility of federal legislation imposing on practices conducted in their own state. From their viewpoint, if the executive had the power to enforce a tariff on the trade that they, as an individual state, engaged in with foreign countries, there was no reason to believe the executive did not have license to enforce their power on other issues, such as slavery, which South Carolina was still dependent on at the time. “...South Carolina politicians...attacked [the tariff] with a fury that almost led to bloodshed...united...in their firm determination to preserve their way of life.” (Watson, 115-116). Jackson saw these rising tensions and understood them as the potential dissolution of the Union. He decided that maintaining a cohesive nation was more

The Tariff of 1832, despite pleas from Southern representatives, failed to moderate the protective barriers erected in earlier legislation. South Carolina passed an ordinance of nullification on November 24, 1832, and threatened to secede if the federal government attempted to collect those tariff duties. Robert Hayne and John Calhoun had resigned from their original positions in office. These two men were the leaders of the nullification drive. When the Jackson administration failed to take any actions to address their concerns, the most radical faction in the state began to advocate that the state itself declare the tariff null and void within South Carolina.The tariff sought to protect northern and western agricultural products from competition with foreign imports; however, the resulting

Jackson’s response to the S.C. doctrine was explained with the creation of his Nullification Proclamation, on December 10,1832. He declared his vigorous intent to reinforce the law and was willing to seek an agreement that would eventually lower the unsatisfactory tariffs. In 1833 congress passed a comprise bill which would set a new tariff. When this new deal was accepted by all other

In 1828, Andrew Jackson passed a tariff that put a tax on foreign goods. This angered the South and they believed he was favoring the North.