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The Cornerstone Speech was delivered by Confederate Vice President, Alexander Stephens extemporaneously in Savannah, Georgia on March 21,1861.The speech explained the differences were between the constitution of the Confederate Republic and that of the United States, laid out the Confederate causes for the civil war, and defended slavery. Historically the speech came more than a month after the secession of (Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina), and Texas and a few weeks since Lincoln's inauguration. The outbreak of hostilities following the bombardment of Fort Sumter had not yet begun.
Economic The longest portion of the speech outlined how this constitution elimated the tariff and removed the Commerce Clause taking away congressional power to regulate any aspect of commerce. The reasoning was on a States Rights argument with the Georgia Railroad as a first example:
Stephens believed that the new country would have a clear delineation between Federal and State responsibilities, and took the position similar to that of South Carolina during the nullification crisis that the Federal government should not pay for internal improvements. Procedural The first change was apparently very important to Stephens and he was upset that it wasn't made even closer to the British system but he felt it was still an improvement over the old constitution. That
As an example, in the U.S. Constitution, the Secretary of Treasury had no chance to explain his budget or to be held accountable except via the press. Also, the president was to serve a single six year term in the hope that it would "remove from the incumbent all temptation to use his office or exert the powers confided to him for any objects of personal ambition." Peculiar Institution This was the Cornerstone that this speech was named for.
He went on to say the new government's
Status The current seven states he thought were plenty enough for a successful republic with a population of five million (here he counts Blacks) and an area larger than France, Spain, Portugal and (what would become) the United Kingdom put together. There was taxable property of $2,200,000 and debts of only $18,000,000 (where the remaining United States had a debt of $174,000,000). Future The constitution made it easy for new states to join and he said surely North Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas would be along soon. But even Virginia, Kentucky and Missouri would eventually join. He expected the evacuation of Sumter to happen soon, but what "course will be pursued toward Fort Pickens, and the other forts on the gulf, is not so well understood." Since the new republic had been born bloodless, he wanted that to continue and to make peace "not only with the North, but with the world." | ||||||||
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