Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

Audience

As an addition to the Constitution this legislation was addressed to the entire nation. Each supporter of the amendment in Congress had his own opinion as to how the balance of federal and state powers was changed to the advantage of the former. All agreed that the rights of all citizens were being expanded.

More specifically, the Fourteenth Amendment was a message to four distinct audiences who had very different interests. First, the amendment told President Johnson that Congress was taking charge of Reconstruction policy. If the southerners (with Johnson's silent consent) were not going to protect the lives and rights of African Americans, Congress would do so. Section 3 struck at Johnson's liberal pardoning policies. President Johnson, of course, would not accept this message and took on the Republicans as they campaigned for Congress in the fall of 1866.

Second, the Fourteenth Amendment was addressed to the former Confederate states. Southern whites were being told to heed Congress if they wished to reenter the Union. They would need a new political leadership, and their Black Codes were unacceptable. Originally, there was a provision that would have admitted a state's delegation to Congress upon its ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment. That measure was tabled. Here the Radical Republicans had their way. Tennessee quickly ratified the amendment and was readmitted, but this clearly did not set a precedent. It was presumed by many, however, that ratification would substantially advance the states toward readmission. Section 2 also prodded the southern states to adopt Black suffrage. Unfortunately, President Johnson encouraged southerners to reject the amendment. With no clear promise of readmission and the drastic consequences of the amendment, white southerners balked.

Third, the message sent to northern voters was that Republicans in Congress, not the president, had their interests at heart. Although it is difficult to measure public opinion, it is safe to say that northerners wanted the South to pay and to express sorrow for what they had done. They also wanted some degree of protection for southern Blacks. Johnson and white southerners had utterly disappointed them. Republicans gave the northern electorate hope. By avoiding Black suffrage directly, punishing Confederate leaders, and guaranteeing the payment of debts, the Fourteenth Amendment was a rallying issue for Republicans in the 1866 and succeeding elections.

Fourth, for oppressed southern Blacks, struggling to make their way amidst a hostile and humiliated white population, the Fourteenth Amendment held much promise. Should they ever get the right to vote, the party of Lincoln would be their destination. In the meantime, southern Blacks relied upon Congress for protection. The Joint Committee on Reconstruction published a report too late to be used by Congress, but it documented the plight of the freedmen and, of course, appealed to the northern public to aid them.