Causes of the civil war - Essay Example

Comparison of the s and Federal Rights Two camps evolved ever since the beginning of the Revolution; the first arguing for more rights of the state and the second arguing for the placement of greater control with the federal government. It was under the Articles of Confederation that the first organized government after the American Revolution was made in the US. The thirteen different states developed a loose confederation whose federal government was very weak. With the increase in problems, the Articles’ weaknesses placed a need for the leaders to unite at the Constitutional Convention and secretly formulate the US Constitution.

The meeting was not attended by strong proponents of the rights of the states such as Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson. According to many, the new constitution, in its surge to continue independent functioning, overlooked the states’ rights. They were of the opinion that the states needed to maintain the right to resolve if they wanted to approve of some federal acts or not. This paved way for the idea of nullification through which the states would be authorized to establish the federal acts as unconstitutional.

States were denied this right by the federal government. Nevertheless, such proponents as John C. Calhoun passionately strived for nullification. The lack of functionality of the nullification and the states’ feeling of not being respected any longer caused them to move towards. (not related to American Promise)