Question

PROJECT: TWO PRESIDENTS
Study the material from lesson one below for a moment. Then be prepared to answer the questions in the form of a short essay.

Upon his return to Mississippi, Davis was appointed to fill a Senate vacancy. He ran for governor in 1851 and lost. Rather than be discouraged, he became heavily involved with the issue of states' rights and campaigned for Franklin Pierce who was elected president in 1852. Pierce made him Secretary of War. When Pierce lost the 1856 election, Davis once again headed to the Senate.

While maintaining the belief that the Federal government was

Answer 1

too restrictive on states' rights, Davis did not believe secession was the right thing to do. Yet, when his home state of Mississippi seceded in January of 1861, he agreed to go with the majority and resigned his Senate seat. He was elected the first and only president of the Confederacy in November of 1861.

As president, Lincoln did not believe the Confederacy had a right to secede under the Constitution. After a number of states did so prior to his inauguration, Lincoln tried to bring them back by saying, "I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the states where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no inclination to do so."

In the years that followed, Lincoln did what he felt was allowed by the Constitution. Since he looked upon Southern secession as an act of rebellion, the Constitution allowed him to exert more power than normal.

The sentences above tell a little about how both men stood on controversial issues.

Answer 2

OBJECTIVES

Compare and contrast the views of Davis and Lincoln on the issue of secession.
Directions
In the space below, write a 200-word summary of where Lincoln and Davis stood on states' rights and secession. Compare and contrast their views and offer a possible solution

Answer 3

@nincompoop

Answer 4

@Whitemonsterbunny17