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Nullification Act
Nullification Act
The US Constitution left some matters unresolved, such as whether the federal or state governments were sovereign.
Some people thought that the federal government was a second creation of the states. They thought the states would get the power to render null and void any law.
Began in 1832, when Congress passed a high-tariff act,
which is sometimes called the Tariff of Abominations,
or the Force Act.
When Jackson became the president, and Congress passed the act, he threatened to send troops to enforce the tariff.
Southerners thought the law was unconstitutional and claimed the right to nullify it.
John C. Calhoun, the vice-president under Jackson, resigned the position in order to go back to South Carolina to nullity the tariff.
South Carolina nullified the tariff because it raised the cost of their purchases and reduced volume of their exports, so they threatened to secede from the Union.
After the tariff was passed, the South realized that if the federal government could pass a law such as this, they might be able to pass a law outlawing slavery.
Henry Clay made a compromise that made a tariff reduction in 1833.
After the compromise, sectional tension remained and would eventually lead to the Civil War.
Citations:
"nullification crisis." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.