A House Divided: Was Secession Constitutional? III

Intro.: A Moment in Time with Dan Roberts.

Content: Was secession constitutional? That was a major issue as the South departed in 1861. The Constitution, historical reality, and events in the next four years, proved that it was not. Whereas the states have retained a rich source of alternative initiatives, experimentation, governmental creativity and efficiency, at each stage of the nation’s development, when states have asserted their ability to abridge Federal power, Federal sovereignty prevailed.