When John C. Calhoun addressed congress, he talked about slavery and its effects on the United States of America. He begins by saying that he always thought that the issue of slavery would eventually hurt the union, and that he wants to preserve the union. After this, he states that the reason this disunity is coming up is because the Southern States had such a different ideology than the North about issues such as slavery. Then he goes back and says many different things about each one's views that increase sectional tensions that take away from the union. The biggest difference is, of course, their views on slavery. To add to the tension because of this, different tariffs and acts benefited different areas of the country, leading to jealousy and hatred between regions. Each side clearly believed that they were in the right and the other side was in the wrong. Because the more states that support a side leads to that side having a majority in the country, the South was becoming at a disadvantage because there were more states being added to the North. Calhoun said that the only way to keep unity is if the North appeases the South's desires and tries to make the two regions more equal under the law. With more equal sections, the South would be ergo less likely to secede, thus preserving the union.
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