South Carolina Exposition and Protest
From Free net encyclopedia
The South Carolina Exposition and Protest was written in 1828 by John C. Calhoun, during the Nullification Crisis. At the time, Calhoun was Vice President of the United States under John Quincy Adams and candidate for Vice President under Andrew Jackson. The document was a protest against the Tariff of 1828. It stated that if the tariff was not repealed, South Carolina would secede. It also stated Calhoun's Doctrine of nullification. IE, The idea that a state has the right to reject yesa federal law. On December 19, 1828, it was presented to the South Carolina State House of Representatives. It was not formally adopted by the legislature, nor did it affect the tariff, but a pamphlet of it was published and circulated. Since Calhoun was then both Vice President and a Vice-Presidential candidate, he chose to conceal his authorship. However, South Carolina did adopt the nullification doctrine, nullifying the tarrifs and voting to build its own army.