The Nullification Crisis

1
The Nullification Crisis
In 1828, Congress adopted an especially high
tariff. Southerners called it the Tariff of
Abominations.
Jacksons Vice President, John C. Calhoun of
South Carolina, violently opposed the tariff.
Calhoun had been a strong nationalist. But his
opinion changed after the Missouri controversy of
1819 and 1820.
John Calhoun
This episode convinced him that the future of
slavery, which he supported, required a stronger
defense of states rights. Toward that end, he
began to champion the concept of nullification.
Nullification Concept in which states could
nullify, or void, any federal law they deemed
unconstitutional.
John Calhoun
2
The Nullification Crisis
In 1832, the South Carolina legislature nullified
the protective tariff and prohibited the
collection of federal tariff duties in S.C.
Further, the state threatened to secede from the
Union if the federal government employed force
against South Carolina.
Calhoun resigned the vice presidency and instead
became a senator.
I quit!
In Congress, Daniel Webster of Massachusetts
became the great champion of nationalism.
In 1833, Webster led the way in pushing for
passage of a Force Bill, giving Jackson authority
to use troops to enforce federal law in South
Carolina.
John Calhoun
Daniel Webster
3
The Nullification Crisis
Nullification Nullification
Andrew Jackson John C. Calhoun
Opposed nullification Supported nullification
Opposed most tariffs Opposed all tariffs
Willing to use force to maintain the Union Willing to secede
4
The Nullification Crisis
With Jacksons support, Congress reduced the
tariff. This reduced South Carolinas militancy.

The crisis had passed. Jackson and Webster could
declare victory.
Winners
Historical Significance The difficult question
of nullification and secession, however, had been
postponed rather than resolved.
Loser
5
The Bank War
Jacksonian Democrats suspected that the new
economy encouraged corruption and greed.
To Jackson and his followers, industry seemed
mainly to enrich wealthy people at the expense of
everyone else.
The Bank had many supporters in Congress. In
1832, they voted to renew the Banks charter.
Jackson however vetoed the renewal.
6
The Bank War
The Banks supporters denounced Jackson as a
power-hungry tyrant trampling on the rights of
Congress.
The veto shocked them because the previous
Presidents had so rarely used that power only
nine times in forty-two years.
PET BANKS
7
The Bank War
Reasons for Chartering the Bank
To establish a national paper currency Manage
Government finances Regulate private banks
Bank Supporters
Bank Opponents (Jackson)
The Bank supplied a stable currency, which
helped economic growth. Important to regulate
state banks. Imposes restraint on issuing credit.
Bank favors rich investors Control of the
banking is too far removed from the
public. Restrains private bankers.
8

• Answers
• Jackson wears a kings clothing, including a
  cloak, crown, scepter.
• That Jackson is trampling U.S. law that Jackson
  is above the law.

9
The Bank War
Led by Henry Clay and Daniel Webster, in 1832 the
Banks friends formed a new political party known
as the Whigs.
The Whig Party Forms
The Whigs were nationalists who wanted a strong
federal government to manage the economy.
Relying on a broad interpretation of the
Constitution, they favored the American System of
protective tariffs, internal improvements, and a
national bank.
Historical Significance The
emergence of the Whigs renewed two-party politics
in the United States. Whigs challenged Jacksons
Democrats in local, state, and national elections.
10
The Bank War
Jackson was able to undermine the Bank, but the
destruction weakened the economy.
PET BANKS
Relieved from federal regulation, state banks
expanded, inflating
prices with a flood of paper
bank notes.
The inflation hurt the common people that Jackson
had professed to help.
The face of value of bank notes exploded
from 10 million in 1833
to

149 million in 1837.
11
Politics After Jackson
Economic troubles were plaguing the country when
Martin Van Buren took office in 1837, the economy
suffered a severe panic.
A key trigger was Jacksons decision, taken
months earlier, to stop accepting paper money for
the purchase of federal land.

• Results
• Hundreds of banks businesses that had invested
  in land went bankrupt.
• Thousands of planters and farmers lost their
  land.
• 1 out of 3 urban workers lost their jobs.
• Those who kept their jobs saw their wages drop by
  30.
• The Panic of 1837 was the worst depression
  suffered by Americans to that date.

12
N
Who is everyone going to blame for the Panic of
1837?
The Whigs Taste Brief Victory
The depression in 1837 revived the Whigs. In
1840, they ran William Henry Harrison for
President and John Tyler for Vice President.
The Whigs ran a campaign that was light on ideas
but heavy on the sort of theatrics that would
become common in American politics.
Van Buren
"Tippecanoe Tyler too"
Turning the political tables, the Whigs persuaded
voters that Van Buren was ineffective, corrupt,
and an aristocrat who threatened the republic.
Harrison
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The Whigs Taste Brief Victory
Harrison won the Presidency, and the Whigs
succeeded in capturing Congress.
A month after assuming office, Harrison died of
pneumonia. Vice President John Tyler of Virginia
became the President.
Tyler surprised and horrified the Whigs by
rejecting their policies. The Whigs would have
to wait for a future election to exercise full
control of the government.
Harrison
Tyler