Andrew Jackson: Proclamation to the People of South Carolina Regarding Nullification

Impact

Jackson's Proclamation regarding Nullification alienated some Democrats, especially in the South, who viewed it as a repudiation of states' rights and, as such, as undercutting issues central to the party, such as opposition to federal aid to internal improvements and federal banking. In addition, many southern state legislatures rejected the validity of nullification. National Republicans, including many of Jackson's political opponents, heartily approved of the proclamation. The political landscape shifted, however, with Jackson's attempt to gain congressional authority for using the military against the nullifiers. The Force Bill politically isolated Jackson, split the Democratic Party, and strengthened the nullifiers' position by uniting those who disagreed with nullification but who feared the expansion of executive power at the expense of states' rights. Nullifiers in South Carolina had not repudiated the doctrine and had achieved tariff reduction, which they used to gain political control over the state. In Congress, the nullification crisis precipitated an alliance between national Republicans and nullifiers, including Clay and Calhoun, resulting in a compromise tariff that reduced the tariff incrementally over nine years and bound the federal government to using the tariff for revenue only from 1842 on. It also contributed to the formation of the Whig Party by uniting Jackson's opponents. The crisis did not legitimize nullification but instead strengthened support for states' rights interpretations of the Constitution, the right of secession, and calls to protect the rights of minority, specifically those who had an interest in the institution of slavery, from the majority.