Here's what the South's real problem was: it was not a lack of political clout in Washington. A united South had all the political clout it might ever want, and indeed, we can see this in the entirely typical Buchanan administration 1857 to 1861. President Buchanan was a "Doughfaced" Northern Democrat, from southern Pennsylvania, highly sympathetic to the Southern cause. In the House, the vote was 105–64 in favor of the tariff. Only one representative out of forty from the seceded states voted for it. The Morrill Tariff passed the Senate 25 to 14 about a year later on February 20, 1861. 24 Republicans voted for the bill and one Democrat. No Republican voted against it. Had the Southern Senators who resigned been there the bill might have been defeated, but it wouldn't have made any difference. A head count made by Texas Senator Wigfall in December 1860 showed that the new Senate that would come in with Lincoln would pass the tariff. Some "clout."
That good ol' faux Southern boy you say favored the South, Pennsylvanian James Buchanan, signed the bill on March 2, 1861. Perhaps he was just sticking Lincoln with the after effects of this albatross of a bill that Lincoln favored.
rustbucket:
"In the House, the vote was 105–64 in favor of the tariff.
Only one representative out of forty from the seceded states voted for it.
The Morrill Tariff passed the Senate 25 to 14 about a year later on February 20, 1861.
24 Republicans voted for the bill and one Democrat.
No Republican voted against it. Had the Southern Senators who resigned been there the bill might have been defeated, but it wouldn't have made any difference.
A head count made by Texas Senator Wigfall in December 1860 showed that the new Senate that would come in with Lincoln would pass the tariff.
Some "clout." " Go back and count the heads again -- you're missing the most important points here.
- Even in 1860, the South could easily have defeated the new Morrill Tariff, had the South been united and determined in its opposition.
But it wasn't.
The South still had plenty of votes, even in the House of Representatives, to defeat Morrill if the Southern representatives and their Northern Democrat allies had all showed up to vote. But they didn't.
Enough Southerners didn't even show up to vote so the result went for higher tariffs.
- Again, the South still could have defeated the Morrill Tariff in the Senate had they been there.
- Nor would Southern-stooge Buchanan have signed the new Tariff, if the Deep South slave-holding states had not already officially formed the Confederate States of America.
Buchanan was the South's stooge, but he was no stooge of some other country!
- Remember, prior to Morrill, tariffs had been reduced from a previous high (before 1830) of over 50% to a low of 17% -- because that's what the South wanted.
Morrill's increase to circa 25% would still have been low by previous historical standards.
- Also, you need to remember that the South's historic electoral defeat in 1860, and the election of minority Republicans was engineered by the slave-holders own "fire eaters" -- by splitting apart the pro-slavery Democrats, into Northern and Southern halves.
- Furthermore, despite Lost Cause revisionist attempts ever since, the Morrill Tariff had nothing, nothing to do with Reasons for Secession.
Go ahead, read them again. The word "tariff" appears nowhere in any of those documents.
Secession was not about tariffs.
Secession was all about, it was only about protecting the future of slavery,