Andrew Johnson: First Annual Message to Congress

Throughout his political career, Andrew Johnson was a strong supporter of states’ rights, rendering it perhaps somewhat surprising that he did not join with the South and resign his Senate seat at the outbreak of the Civil War. Nevertheless, he was also a defender of the Union. In his First Annual Message to Congress he makes clear his desire to rein in the powers of the federal government over the states. After the Civil War ended, Johnson was faced with how to handle the rebellious South. Johnson had initiated Reconstruction with a view toward reconciliation, not vengeance. He required only that states outlaw slavery, repudiate any further secession efforts, and cancel the Confederate debt. Otherwise, he gave the states wide scope in conducting their own affairs. People in the North were not happy with his choice or with the slow pace of change in the South. In his First Annual Message to Congress, Johnson justifies his policies in the context of his belief in states’s rights.