Polarization in Presidential Politics: The Coming of Secession
James Buchanan was the third in a series of "doughface" presidents. Hailing from Pennsylvania, Buchanan's biographer Jean Baker theorizes that Buchanan was "an intellectual and electoral hostage" to the South, and was so enamored with the ways of the south that he let ideology trump pragmatism. Secession began on his watch, and Buchanan is frequently criticized not only for doing nothing to stop it, but for allowing the conditions for it to occur to take place under his presidency.
Buchanan had served as Secretary of State in the James K. Polk administration from 1845 to 1849. He helped negotiate the 1846 Oregon Treaty establishing the 49th parallel as the northern boundary of the western United States. He served as minister to the Court of St. James's (Britain) from 1853 to 1856, during which time he was out of sight from a public that watched Franklin Pierce's handling of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and "bleeding Kansas".
Right from the start of his administration Buchanan showed that he sided with the interests of slaveholders. In his inaugural address, Buchanan said that the question of slavery in the territories was "happily, a matter of but little practical importance" because the Supreme Court was about to settle it "speedily and finally", adding that when the decision came he would "cheerfully submit, whatever this may be". He was referring to a case before the court known as the Dred Scott case. Two days after Buchanan's inauguration, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney delivered the Dred Scott Decision on behalf of the court's majority. He ruled that Congress had no constitutional power to exclude slavery in the territories. The decision delighted Southerners and angered many in the North. This was no surprise to Buchanan. He was happy to see the territorial question resolved by the Supreme Court. He wrote to Justice John Catron in January 1857, inquiring about the outcome of the case and suggested his preference for a decision favorable to Southerners. Catron, who was from Tennessee, replied on February 10 that the Supreme Court's southern majority would decide against Scott and asked Buchanan to convince his fellow Pennsylvanian, Justice Robert Cooper Grier, to join the majority. Buchanan wrote to Grier and successfully convinced him to side with the majority. The court declared that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 unconstitutional.
When the decision was issued two days later, Republicans began spreading word that Taney had revealed the outcome of the case to Buchanan. Abraham Lincoln, in his 1858 House Divided Speech, denounced Buchanan, Taney, Stephen A. Douglas and Franklin Pierce as accomplices of the Slave Power. He alleged that they were part of a conspiracy to eliminate legal barriers to slavery.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 had created the Kansas Territory, and allowed the settlers there to choose whether to allow slavery. This had resulted in violence between "Free-Soil" (anti-slavery) and pro-slavery settlers (see "Bleeding Kansas"). The anti-slavery settlers organized a government in Topeka, while pro-slavery settlers established a seat of government in Lecompton, Kansas. For Kansas to be admitted to statehood, a state constitution had to be submitted to Congress with the approval of a majority of residents. To resolve the issue, Buchanan appointed Robert J. Walker as territorial Governor, and asked him to try and reconcile the factions and approving a constitution. Walker, who was from Mississippi, was expected to assist the pro-slavery faction. But most Kansas settlers were against slavery in the territory. The pro-slavery Lecomptonites held a referendum, which Free-Soilers boycotted. Walker viewed the process as unfair and resigned in disgust.
Nevertheless, Buchanan now pushed for Congressional approval of Kansas statehood under the Lecompton Constitution. Buchanan made every effort to get Congressional approval, offering favors, patronage appointments and even cash for votes. The Lecompton bill passed through the House of Representatives, but failed in the Senate, where it was opposed by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois. Douglas advocated letting the settlers decide on slavery and he rejected the fraudulent way the Lecompton Constitution was supposedly adopted. The battle over Kansas escalated into a battle for control of the Democratic Party and between Buchanan and Douglas. Douglas's Senate term ended in 1859; so the Illinois legislature elected in 1858 had to choose whether or not to re-elect him. This battle included the famous Lincoln-Douglas Debates. Douglas Democrats won the legislative election and Douglas was re-elected to the Senate. Douglas forces took control throughout the North, except in Buchanan's home state of Pennsylvania, reducing Buchanan's support within the party.
The Democratic Party's national convention in 1860 led to a split in the Party. The southern wing walked out of the convention and nominated its own candidate for president, incumbent Vice President John C. Breckinridge. A faction of former Whigs from the south and former members of the American (Know Nothing) Party nominated former Speaker of the House John Bell, who took no position on slavery, his only focus was on saving the Union. The remainder of the party finally nominated Stephen Douglas. Buchanan supported Breckinridge's candidacy. When the Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln, it was a near certainty that he would defeat a splintered Democratic party.
In October of 1860, General Winfield Scott warned Buchanan that Lincoln's election would likely cause at least seven states to secede. He recommended that massive amounts of federal troops and artillery be deployed to those states to protect federal property. Buchanan ignored these recommendations. After Lincoln's election, Buchanan directed his Secretary of War John B. Floyd to reinforce southern forts, but Floyd, who was from Virginia, convinced him to revoke the order. Floyd later became a Confederate general during the war.
With Lincoln's victory, secession of many southern states seemed imminent. Buchanan addressed the issue in his final message to Congress. He denied the legal right of states to secede but said that the federal government could not legally prevent them. He blamed "intemperate interference of the Northern people with the question of slavery in the Southern States" for the crisis. His only suggestion to solve the crisis was "an explanatory amendment" reaffirming the constitutionality of slavery in the states. His address was sharply criticized both by the north, for its refusal to stop secession, and the south, for denying their right to secede.
Efforts were made by statesmen such as Sen. John J. Crittenden, Rep. Thomas Corwin, and former president John Tyler to negotiate a compromise to stop secession, with Buchanan's support, but all of these failed. Buchanan tried to convince President-elect Lincoln to call for a constitutional convention or national referendum to resolve the issue of slavery. Lincoln declined.
South Carolina declared its secession on December 20, 1860, followed by six other slave states, and, by February 1861, they had formed the Confederate States of America. As Scott had predicted, the secessionist governments declared eminent domain over federal property within their states and sought to take control of all federal property within their borders. Buchanan and his administration took no action to stop the confiscation of government property. Before Buchanan left office, all arsenals and forts in the seceding states were lost (except Fort Sumter, off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, and three island outposts in Florida). Buchanan made a quiet arrangement with South Carolina's legislators that he would not reinforce Fort Sumpter if the state left it alone. However, Buchanan did not inform the Charleston commander, Major Robert Anderson, of the agreement, and on December 26 Anderson violated the pact by moving his command to Fort Sumter. Southerners responded with a demand that Buchanan remove Anderson, while northerners demanded support for the commander. On December 31, Buchanan ordered reinforcements.
On January 5, Buchanan sent the civilian steamer Star of the West to carry reinforcements and supplies to Fort Sumter. On January 9, 1861, South Carolina state batteries opened fire on the ship, causing it to turn around and return to New York. Buchanan was again criticized both by both north (for lack of retaliation against South Carolina) and the south (for attempting to reinforce Fort Sumter). Buchanan made no further moves either to prepare for war or to avert it.
On Buchanan's final day as president, March 4, 1861, he remarked to his successor Abraham Lincoln, "If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man."
The Civil War began the month after Buchanan's retirement. He publicly supported the war, writing "the assault upon Sumter was the commencement of war by the Confederate states, and no alternative was left but to prosecute it with vigor on our part". He also wrote a letter to his fellow Pennsylvania Democrats, urging them to "join the many thousands of brave & patriotic volunteers who are already in the field".
Buchanan spent most of his remaining years defending himself from public blame for the Civil War, which some of his critics called "Buchanan's War". He received many angry and threatening letters, and stores displayed Buchanan's likeness with the eyes inked red, a noose drawn around his neck and the word "TRAITOR" written across his forehead. Newspapers accused him of colluding with the Confederacy.
Buchanan finally began defending himself in October 1862, in an exchange of letters between himself and Winfield Scott that was published in the National Intelligencer newspaper. He soon began writing his fullest public defense, in the form of his memoir Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of Rebellion, which was published in 1866.
Buchanan caught a cold in May 1868, which quickly became worse. He died on June 1, 1868, from respiratory failure at the age of 77 at his home at Wheatland.
Buchanan had served as Secretary of State in the James K. Polk administration from 1845 to 1849. He helped negotiate the 1846 Oregon Treaty establishing the 49th parallel as the northern boundary of the western United States. He served as minister to the Court of St. James's (Britain) from 1853 to 1856, during which time he was out of sight from a public that watched Franklin Pierce's handling of the Kansas-Nebraska Act and "bleeding Kansas".
Right from the start of his administration Buchanan showed that he sided with the interests of slaveholders. In his inaugural address, Buchanan said that the question of slavery in the territories was "happily, a matter of but little practical importance" because the Supreme Court was about to settle it "speedily and finally", adding that when the decision came he would "cheerfully submit, whatever this may be". He was referring to a case before the court known as the Dred Scott case. Two days after Buchanan's inauguration, Chief Justice Roger B. Taney delivered the Dred Scott Decision on behalf of the court's majority. He ruled that Congress had no constitutional power to exclude slavery in the territories. The decision delighted Southerners and angered many in the North. This was no surprise to Buchanan. He was happy to see the territorial question resolved by the Supreme Court. He wrote to Justice John Catron in January 1857, inquiring about the outcome of the case and suggested his preference for a decision favorable to Southerners. Catron, who was from Tennessee, replied on February 10 that the Supreme Court's southern majority would decide against Scott and asked Buchanan to convince his fellow Pennsylvanian, Justice Robert Cooper Grier, to join the majority. Buchanan wrote to Grier and successfully convinced him to side with the majority. The court declared that the Missouri Compromise of 1820 unconstitutional.
When the decision was issued two days later, Republicans began spreading word that Taney had revealed the outcome of the case to Buchanan. Abraham Lincoln, in his 1858 House Divided Speech, denounced Buchanan, Taney, Stephen A. Douglas and Franklin Pierce as accomplices of the Slave Power. He alleged that they were part of a conspiracy to eliminate legal barriers to slavery.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 had created the Kansas Territory, and allowed the settlers there to choose whether to allow slavery. This had resulted in violence between "Free-Soil" (anti-slavery) and pro-slavery settlers (see "Bleeding Kansas"). The anti-slavery settlers organized a government in Topeka, while pro-slavery settlers established a seat of government in Lecompton, Kansas. For Kansas to be admitted to statehood, a state constitution had to be submitted to Congress with the approval of a majority of residents. To resolve the issue, Buchanan appointed Robert J. Walker as territorial Governor, and asked him to try and reconcile the factions and approving a constitution. Walker, who was from Mississippi, was expected to assist the pro-slavery faction. But most Kansas settlers were against slavery in the territory. The pro-slavery Lecomptonites held a referendum, which Free-Soilers boycotted. Walker viewed the process as unfair and resigned in disgust.
Nevertheless, Buchanan now pushed for Congressional approval of Kansas statehood under the Lecompton Constitution. Buchanan made every effort to get Congressional approval, offering favors, patronage appointments and even cash for votes. The Lecompton bill passed through the House of Representatives, but failed in the Senate, where it was opposed by Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois. Douglas advocated letting the settlers decide on slavery and he rejected the fraudulent way the Lecompton Constitution was supposedly adopted. The battle over Kansas escalated into a battle for control of the Democratic Party and between Buchanan and Douglas. Douglas's Senate term ended in 1859; so the Illinois legislature elected in 1858 had to choose whether or not to re-elect him. This battle included the famous Lincoln-Douglas Debates. Douglas Democrats won the legislative election and Douglas was re-elected to the Senate. Douglas forces took control throughout the North, except in Buchanan's home state of Pennsylvania, reducing Buchanan's support within the party.
The Democratic Party's national convention in 1860 led to a split in the Party. The southern wing walked out of the convention and nominated its own candidate for president, incumbent Vice President John C. Breckinridge. A faction of former Whigs from the south and former members of the American (Know Nothing) Party nominated former Speaker of the House John Bell, who took no position on slavery, his only focus was on saving the Union. The remainder of the party finally nominated Stephen Douglas. Buchanan supported Breckinridge's candidacy. When the Republicans nominated Abraham Lincoln, it was a near certainty that he would defeat a splintered Democratic party.
In October of 1860, General Winfield Scott warned Buchanan that Lincoln's election would likely cause at least seven states to secede. He recommended that massive amounts of federal troops and artillery be deployed to those states to protect federal property. Buchanan ignored these recommendations. After Lincoln's election, Buchanan directed his Secretary of War John B. Floyd to reinforce southern forts, but Floyd, who was from Virginia, convinced him to revoke the order. Floyd later became a Confederate general during the war.
With Lincoln's victory, secession of many southern states seemed imminent. Buchanan addressed the issue in his final message to Congress. He denied the legal right of states to secede but said that the federal government could not legally prevent them. He blamed "intemperate interference of the Northern people with the question of slavery in the Southern States" for the crisis. His only suggestion to solve the crisis was "an explanatory amendment" reaffirming the constitutionality of slavery in the states. His address was sharply criticized both by the north, for its refusal to stop secession, and the south, for denying their right to secede.
Efforts were made by statesmen such as Sen. John J. Crittenden, Rep. Thomas Corwin, and former president John Tyler to negotiate a compromise to stop secession, with Buchanan's support, but all of these failed. Buchanan tried to convince President-elect Lincoln to call for a constitutional convention or national referendum to resolve the issue of slavery. Lincoln declined.
South Carolina declared its secession on December 20, 1860, followed by six other slave states, and, by February 1861, they had formed the Confederate States of America. As Scott had predicted, the secessionist governments declared eminent domain over federal property within their states and sought to take control of all federal property within their borders. Buchanan and his administration took no action to stop the confiscation of government property. Before Buchanan left office, all arsenals and forts in the seceding states were lost (except Fort Sumter, off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina, and three island outposts in Florida). Buchanan made a quiet arrangement with South Carolina's legislators that he would not reinforce Fort Sumpter if the state left it alone. However, Buchanan did not inform the Charleston commander, Major Robert Anderson, of the agreement, and on December 26 Anderson violated the pact by moving his command to Fort Sumter. Southerners responded with a demand that Buchanan remove Anderson, while northerners demanded support for the commander. On December 31, Buchanan ordered reinforcements.
On January 5, Buchanan sent the civilian steamer Star of the West to carry reinforcements and supplies to Fort Sumter. On January 9, 1861, South Carolina state batteries opened fire on the ship, causing it to turn around and return to New York. Buchanan was again criticized both by both north (for lack of retaliation against South Carolina) and the south (for attempting to reinforce Fort Sumter). Buchanan made no further moves either to prepare for war or to avert it.
On Buchanan's final day as president, March 4, 1861, he remarked to his successor Abraham Lincoln, "If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man."
The Civil War began the month after Buchanan's retirement. He publicly supported the war, writing "the assault upon Sumter was the commencement of war by the Confederate states, and no alternative was left but to prosecute it with vigor on our part". He also wrote a letter to his fellow Pennsylvania Democrats, urging them to "join the many thousands of brave & patriotic volunteers who are already in the field".
Buchanan spent most of his remaining years defending himself from public blame for the Civil War, which some of his critics called "Buchanan's War". He received many angry and threatening letters, and stores displayed Buchanan's likeness with the eyes inked red, a noose drawn around his neck and the word "TRAITOR" written across his forehead. Newspapers accused him of colluding with the Confederacy.
Buchanan finally began defending himself in October 1862, in an exchange of letters between himself and Winfield Scott that was published in the National Intelligencer newspaper. He soon began writing his fullest public defense, in the form of his memoir Mr. Buchanan's Administration on the Eve of Rebellion, which was published in 1866.
Buchanan caught a cold in May 1868, which quickly became worse. He died on June 1, 1868, from respiratory failure at the age of 77 at his home at Wheatland.