Sold – Pierce Fears For the Constitution and Union If His Policies Fail at the Polls and in Kansas

In his Inaugural Address, Pierce pledged his support of the institution of slavery, saying “I believe that involuntary servitude…is recognized by the Constitution.” Thus, he believed, opposition to slavery was both unconstitutional and a threat to the Union itself. In 1854, he supported and signed the Kansas-Nebraska Bill with its Popular Sovereignty concept, under which the settlers in every territory (including Kansas) would decide whether to adopt free or slave constitutions. This measure repealed the Missouri Compromise and reopened the question of slavery in the West. Kansas quickly became a battleground between free and pro-slavery settlers, with many killed on both sides. The last two years of Pierce's administration centered on the expanding civil war there, where two governments had come into being—a southern administration in Lecompton, which Pierce recognized, and a northern one in Topeka, which he declared treasonable and ordered to disband. He sent troops to maintain order but succeeded neither in quieting Kansas nor dislodging the Topeka government. John W. Geary accepted Pierce's appointment to serve as governor of the Kansas Territory on July 31, 1856. He arrived at Fort Leavenworth on September 9 and went to the territorial capital at Lecompton the following day, The following week he disbanded the existing Kansas militia, which was gathering to oppose Missouri border ruffians.

Because of these policies, Pierce lost all credibility he had in the North. So when the Democrats met to select a candidate for the 1856 election, he was unable to secure renomination. Instead, the party turned to the one prominent candidate for the nomination that had taken no controversial positions on the traumatic events of the past few years – James Buchanan, who as ambassador to Great Britain had been out of the country. Pierce proved a man both loyal to his party and true to his principles. He worked hard for a victory for Buchanan and the entire Democratic slate. The election that year saw the entry of the Republican Party, which sought to forbid the expansion of slavery into the territories, into national, state and local contests. Pierce was vehemently against everything the new party stood for and wanted it to go down to defeat. However, Republicans were gaining strong support in the North, and he monitored the election situation closely. Back the, some states, including Pennsylvania, had two elections in presidential years: they had state and local elections in October and balloting for president in November. This meant that in October, it was usually possible to see which way the political wind was blowing. So winning the earlier election took on great importance, both because of the bellweather nature of the vote and the difficulty of maintaining party morale when a clear defeat was ahead.

Autograph Letter Signed as President, Washington, September 19, 1856, to his ally Charles Brown, Democratic Congressman from Philadelphia, articulating his assessment that the Constitution and Union were actually at stake and urging the importance of the upcoming October election in Pennsylvania. “The enclosed letter from Judge Law – one of our true and able friends in Indiana – came by the mail which reached here tonight. If I knew Genl Lane’s whereabouts at present, I should inclose the letter to him. He left here several days since for Philadelphia. If he is there now with you, do me the favor to show him the letter and then return it to me by mail. I will not believe that we are to lose Indiana and Illinois. But it is vain to say that if defeated in October, we can still triumph in November. The moral power of the election in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana in October will settle the question one way or the other. We can withstand the shock of any result in the two states last named, if we can but triumph handsomely in the Keystone. This we must do. Your state is emphatically the battle ground – not merely the battle ground upon which the supremacy of parties in a great controlling central state is to be determined, but really the field upon which the decisive battle of the Constitution and the Union is to be fought in October. This so far as I can judge is the universal impression of our friends. With a victory in Pennsylvania we can carry New Hampshire and I think Connecticut…What do you believe with regard to your state in October? What are the calculations of our friends? Will you send me your calculation, giving each county with its anticipated majority.?”?He adds a P.S., “Our official news from Kansas promises the restoration of order and security there.” This last point was likely his wishful spin on the arrival of Geary in Kansas and word just received that he had disbanded the militia, both of which he thought improved the pro-slavery position there. Interestingly, what Geary saw in Kansas changed his politics. When the Civil War broke out, he joined the Union Army and became a successful general.