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Difficulty: MediumJacksonian Democracy and the Second Party System

Read the excerpt below.

"I consider, then, the power to annul a law of the United States, assumed by one State, incompatible with the existence of the Union, contradicted expressly by the Constitution, unauthorized by its spirit, inconsistent with every principle on which it was founded, and destructive of the great object for which it was formed."
— President Andrew Jackson, Proclamation to the People of South Carolina, 1832

The arguments expressed in the excerpt most directly register a conflict over which of the following issues?

  1. The balance of power between federal sovereignty and state authorityAnswer
  2. B
    The authority of the Supreme Court to rule on the constitutionality of federal tariffs
  3. C
    The federal government's constitutional role in funding internal transportation improvements
  4. D
    The debate over whether strict construction of the Constitution prohibited a national bank

Answer

The balance of power between federal sovereignty and state authority
The correct option is correct because the excerpt represents Jackson's direct denunciation of nullification—the doctrine that individual states could declare federal laws void within their borders. This conflict was a major constitutional debate over the division of power between federal supremacy and state sovereignty during the Second Party System.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the document and context
The excerpt is from President Andrew Jackson's 1832 Proclamation to the People of South Carolina, issued in response to South Carolina's Ordinance of Nullification.
Establishes the historical setting and the specific conflict surrounding the Tariff of 1832 and nullification.
2
Analyze the central argument of the speaker
Jackson argues that a state's attempt to annul a federal law is incompatible with the Constitution and destructive to the survival of the Union.
Locates the primary point of contention, which is the supremacy of federal law over state ordinances.
3
Relate the argument to the broader historical debate
This conflict directly represents the struggle over the balance of power between federal sovereignty and state authority.
Identifies the correct thematic option representing the fundamental issue of the crisis.

Key Concept

The Nullification Crisis and the debate over states' rights versus federal sovereignty during the Jacksonian era.
Estimated Time:1m 30s
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Topics

Jacksonian Democracy and the Second Party System

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