Debate over States’ Rights and National Sovereignty
Over several days in January 1830, Senators Robert Hayne (1791–1839) of South Carolina and Daniel Webster (1782–1852) exchanged salvos about the sovereignty of the national government and states’ rights. Hayne interpreted the Constitution as little more than a treaty between sovereign states, which had the right to withdraw from the Union. Webster disagreed, and in his second speech, painted a dramatic picture of what would happen if the Union fell apart. He ended by praising “Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable!”
Over several days in January 1830, Senators Robert Hayne (1791–1839) of South Carolina and Daniel Webster (1782–1852) exchanged salvos about the sovereignty of the national government and states’ rights. Hayne interpreted the Constitution as little more than a treaty between sovereign states, which had the right to withdraw from the Union. Webster disagreed, and in his second speech, painted a dramatic picture of what would happen if the Union fell apart. He ended by praising “Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable!”