LAD #13: John Calhoun Speech

In 1850, John C. Calhoun realized that the Union was on its way to being torn apart.  He explained his worries to Congress through his speech which he was too sick to even read himself.  Right off the bat, he blamed slavery as one of the main reasons for the rising tensions between the north and the south.  He believed that this, along with many other issues, must be resolved if the country was to remain united. He said that much of the disunity came from the huge division in political parties between the Democrats and the Whigs.  Next he believed that there was an unfair balance of sectionalism in government, with most representatives from the north because of its dense population.  Because they were in control, they were able to use things like the BUS for their interests.  Calhoun explained that another reason the south was upset was because most of the new states being annexed were in the north, which yet again caused an unfair balance of power in the Senate, House of Representatives and in the Electoral College.  And on top of all of this Southerners hated the north's Tariff of Abominations, because it helped the north and hindered the south.  Finally Calhoun believed that slavery, more than anything else, was dividing the union.  The north believed it was unjust, while the south believed it was a necessary part of their economy which was already being hurt by the tariff.  Calhoun predicted that there could only be two end results, abolition of slavery or secession.  Calhoun told Congress that the only way to stop the South from eventually seceding would be to appease them by fixing some of these conflicts.  All in all, Calhoun predicted that if nothing was done, a civil war was on the horizon.