The Annexation Of Texas There are many domestic issues that have arisen within the United States since its founding, and among these, many have caused a division within the American people. Since the founding of our nation there has been much to consider regarding certain domestic issues. The rights of the citizens, the power of the government, the rights of the states, and the expansion of territory were and continue to be domestic issues, and the dispute over the annexation of Texas is one such issue. Between northern abolitionists fight to end slavery and the southern states’ desire to save Texas from war, the annexation of Texas would become one of the most dividing issues that we have had to face. Following the recognition of Mexico’s
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While this was a reason for the annexation of Texas, the southern states had different ones. With the balance of power between slave states and free states being equal at the time, southern states wanted to annex Texas as a slave state in order to tip the balance in their favor. With the amount of land that Texas covered and the system of representation within the government, the Annexation of Texas would give the southern states an extreme advantage. Some also reasoned that if Texas were to be left alone, it would fail to exist as an independent country. Their system of government was ineffective, failing to provide what would be needed for a country: roads, schools, law enforcement, effective currency. Without these Texas would fail as an independant country. Opposed to the annexation were the northern states. They recognized that the annexation would offset the balance and allow for southern states to expand slavery by their own means. Many also feared that the annexation of Texas would lead to a war with Mexico as they would be on the bordering territory that we might try to claim and justify through manifest destiny. There was also the issue that Texas was still an independent country, and it was not clear whether the United States had the authority to induct other nations. Along with that, Texas didn’t even meet the basic requirements in order to be a state, nor …show more content…
President Jackson was in office during Texas’ fight for independence, and after the dust from their battles had settled and he was able to see the trouble that the annexation would cause. Jackson would decide to leave the issue alone, much like the issue of slavery. Jackson’s successor, Martin Van Buren, would take an abolitionist stance on the annexation of Texas during his presidency. Van Buren opposed the expansion of slavery, and believed that the addition of the state would cause for a war with Mexico. Following Van Buren, president John Tyler attempted to bring about the annexation of Texas in 1844, as a matter of national policy, but when John C. Calhoun made the statement that the annexation of Texas was necessary for the preservation of slavery, the matter became a sectional controversy. Texas became a stalemate topic of debate until three days before Tyler would leave office, when he signed a joint resolution that would provide for the annexation of Texas, leaving his successor, James K. Polk, with the prospect of war with Mexico. With all of the previous presidential inaction, Tyler’s action would lead America into the Mexican-American
While this was a reason for the annexation of Texas, the southern states had different ones. With the balance of power between slave states and free states being equal at the time, southern states wanted to annex Texas as a slave state in order to tip the balance in their favor. With the amount of land that Texas covered and the system of representation within the government, the Annexation of Texas would give the southern states an extreme advantage. Some also reasoned that if Texas were to be left alone, it would fail to exist as an independent country. Their system of government was ineffective, failing to provide what would be needed for a country: roads, schools, law enforcement, effective currency. Without these Texas would fail as an independant country. Opposed to the annexation were the northern states. They recognized that the annexation would offset the balance and allow for southern states to expand slavery by their own means. Many also feared that the annexation of Texas would lead to a war with Mexico as they would be on the bordering territory that we might try to claim and justify through manifest destiny. There was also the issue that Texas was still an independent country, and it was not clear whether the United States had the authority to induct other nations. Along with that, Texas didn’t even meet the basic requirements in order to be a state, nor …show more content…
President Jackson was in office during Texas’ fight for independence, and after the dust from their battles had settled and he was able to see the trouble that the annexation would cause. Jackson would decide to leave the issue alone, much like the issue of slavery. Jackson’s successor, Martin Van Buren, would take an abolitionist stance on the annexation of Texas during his presidency. Van Buren opposed the expansion of slavery, and believed that the addition of the state would cause for a war with Mexico. Following Van Buren, president John Tyler attempted to bring about the annexation of Texas in 1844, as a matter of national policy, but when John C. Calhoun made the statement that the annexation of Texas was necessary for the preservation of slavery, the matter became a sectional controversy. Texas became a stalemate topic of debate until three days before Tyler would leave office, when he signed a joint resolution that would provide for the annexation of Texas, leaving his successor, James K. Polk, with the prospect of war with Mexico. With all of the previous presidential inaction, Tyler’s action would lead America into the Mexican-American