Why did southerners resist the increased traffic in 1828 arguing it should be nullified

Answer 1

In 1828, the issue of increased traffic, particularly in the form of tariffs, was a point of contention for the southern states in the United States. The southern states resisted this increase and argued for nullification for several reasons:

1. Economic interests: The southern states heavily relied on agriculture, particularly the cultivation of cotton, as their primary economic activity. Increased traffic and tariffs on imported goods meant higher prices for the agricultural tools, machinery, and other goods they needed. This increase in costs threatened the profitability of their agricultural operations.

2. Protective tariffs: The tariffs imposed by the federal government were seen as benefiting the industrialized northern states at the expense of the agrarian southern states. The southern states perceived these tariffs as a means to protect the manufacturing industries in the North by making imported goods expensive and encouraging consumers to buy domestically produced goods. As a result, the southern states felt that they were being unfairly burdened by these tariffs.

3. Sectional divides: The issue of increased traffic and tariffs exacerbated the existing sectional divisions between the North and the South. The South, with its agrarian economy, saw itself as economically and socially distinct from the industrialized North. Southern leaders argued that the federal government was favoring Northern interests over those of the South, leading to a growing sense of resentment and the desire to assert their own rights and interests.

4. Nullification theory: The concept of nullification, rooted in the states' rights doctrine, held that states had the right to declare federal laws null and void if they deemed them unconstitutional. Southern states, particularly South Carolina under the leadership of John C. Calhoun, invoked this theory to resist the increased traffic and tariffs of 1828. They argued that the federal government was exceeding its constitutional authority by imposing tariffs that disproportionately affected the southern states. Nullification was seen as a means to assert state sovereignty and protect the economic interests of the South.

Overall, the resistance of southern states to the increased traffic and their call for nullification in 1828 was a result of economic concerns, perceived sectional biases, and a desire to assert their rights and autonomy in the face of what they believed to be unfair federal policies.