Congress and the Crisis of the 1850s

18 Michael F. Holt Politics, Patronage, and Public Policy The Compromise of  Worked out in฀fractious฀debates฀and฀seemingly฀endless฀roll฀call฀ votes that lasted from early December 1849 until late September 1850,฀passage฀of฀the฀Compromise฀of฀1850 is one of the most famous episodes ฀in฀congressional฀history.฀It฀was฀necessitated฀by฀and฀helped฀resolve฀an฀ increasingly฀rancorous฀sectional฀quarrel฀about฀whether฀slavery฀could฀be฀extended to the lands acquired from Mexico as a result of the Mexican War. That฀quarrel฀was฀ignited฀fully฀eighteen฀months฀before฀the฀actual฀acquisition฀ of the Mexican Cession by ratiWcation฀of฀the฀Treaty฀of฀Guadalupe฀Hidalgo,฀ in March 1848. ฀ War฀with฀Mexico฀began฀in฀May฀1846.฀On฀August฀8 of that year Pennsylvania ’s freshman Democratic representative David Wilmot introduced his famous proviso that would bar slavery from any lands taken from Mexico as a฀result฀of฀the฀war.฀The฀Wilmot฀Proviso฀immediately฀polarized฀both฀Whig฀ and฀Democratic฀congressmen฀along฀sectional฀lines,฀and฀it฀would฀continue฀to฀ do฀so฀over฀the฀next฀four฀years฀every฀time฀a฀bill฀incorporating฀congressional฀ prohibition of slavery from the territories came up for a vote. By the end of 1849, fourteen of Wfteen฀northern฀state฀legislatures฀had฀instructed฀their฀U.S.฀ senators and requested their U.S. representatives to impose the proviso on any฀formal฀territorial฀governments฀that฀Congress฀established฀in฀the฀Mexican Cession. By then many southerners vowed to secede should the proviso This chapter relies heavily on my previously published work, and the documentation for what I say here can be found in those works. See Michael F. Holt, The Political Crisis of the s (1978; reprint ed., New York, 1983), pp. 67–99; and Holt, The Rise and Fall of the American Whig Party: Jacksonian Politics and the Onset of the Civil War (New York, 1999), pp. 383–552. The Compromise of  19 ever be enacted into law, and in late 1849 Mississippi issued a call to all slave states฀to฀send฀delegates฀to฀a฀slave-state฀convention฀in฀Nashville,฀Tennessee,฀ in June 1850฀to฀devise฀a฀common฀regional฀response฀to฀the฀threatened฀enactment ฀of฀the฀congressional฀ban฀on฀slavery฀extension.฀This฀was฀the฀crisis฀that฀ the Wrst฀session฀of฀the฀Thirty-First฀Congress฀would฀have฀to฀address. ฀ During฀the฀presidential฀election฀of ฀1848 both the Democrats and the Whigs฀had฀tried฀to฀paper฀over฀their฀divisions฀over฀the฀proviso.฀Democrats฀ did฀so฀by฀nominating฀Senator฀Lewis฀Cass฀of฀Michigan,฀a฀champion฀of฀a฀doctrine ฀known฀as฀popular฀sovereignty.฀This฀doctrine฀would฀remove฀any฀decision ฀about฀slavery฀in฀the฀territories฀from฀Congress฀itself฀and฀instead฀allow฀ the actual residents of the territories to decide whether slavery would be permitted฀in฀them.฀Northern฀and฀southern฀Democrats฀could฀agree฀on฀this฀ formula฀because฀they฀were฀intentionally฀ambiguous฀about฀precisely฀when฀ the residents of a territory could make this decision. Northern Democrats insisted that the Wrst฀elected฀territorial฀legislature฀could฀decide,฀and฀it,฀they฀ promised, was almost certain to bar slavery. Southern Democrats, in contrast , insisted that only when there was a suYciently฀large฀population฀to฀ justify฀admission฀to฀statehood฀could฀the฀residents฀make฀the฀decision฀when฀ they wrote the new state’s constitution. Until then, southern Democrats declared ,฀slavery฀would฀be฀legal฀during฀the฀territorial฀phase.฀Since฀Cass฀also฀ vowed฀to฀veto฀the฀proviso฀should฀it฀pass฀Congress฀while฀he฀was฀president,฀his฀ nomination satisWed almost all southern Democrats as well as most northern Democrats. ฀ Whigs,฀in฀contrast,฀nominated฀General฀Zachary฀Taylor,฀a฀hero฀of ฀the฀ Mexican฀War฀and฀a฀large฀southern฀slaveholder.฀The฀beauty฀of฀Taylor฀as฀a฀ candidate was that his views on public policy were utterly unknown. Taylor, indeed, had never voted in any prior election, let alone aYliated with either political฀party.฀In฀the฀spring฀of฀1848,฀shortly฀before฀the฀Whigs’฀national฀nominating ฀convention,฀however,฀Taylor฀did฀publicly฀avow฀his฀commitment฀to฀a฀ fundamental฀Whig฀principle:฀presidents฀must฀never฀veto฀any฀law฀passed฀by฀ Congress฀unless฀it฀was฀clearly฀unconstitutional. ฀ Taylor’s฀nomination฀allowed฀the฀Whigs,฀too,฀to฀run฀a฀Janus-faced฀campaign ,฀saying฀one฀thing฀in฀the฀North฀and฀another฀in฀the฀South.฀Northern฀ Whigs฀seized฀on฀Taylor’s฀pledge฀never฀to฀veto฀constitutional฀legislation฀to฀ promise฀that฀Taylor฀would฀sign฀the฀proviso,฀which฀northern฀Whigs฀remained฀ determined to pass, while Cass would veto it. The best way to stop slavery expansion,฀they฀contended,฀was฀to฀elect฀northern฀Whig฀congressmen,฀who฀ [3.133.12.172] Project MUSE (2024-05-01 12:14 GMT) 20 Michael F. Holt would฀pass฀the฀proviso...