Transcript Chapter 17 Section 2 Radicals in Control

Chapter 17 Section 2
Radicals in Control
Unrest Across the South
• Various reconstruction plans and
uncertainty across the south led to
several riots in major southern cities.
Unrest Across the South
• These riots led the Radical
Republicans to believe that President
Johnson’s plan was not strong
enough.
Black Codes
• By early 1866, many southern states
had passed laws to control freed
slaves.
Black Codes
• The laws allowed police to arrest
jobless African Americans and
banned African Americans from
owning or renting land.
• Congress passed a new bill giving the
Freedman’s Bureau new powers to
fight the Black Codes
Civil Rights Act of 1866
• Congress then passed the Civil
Rights Act which granted African
Americans full citizenship and gave
the federal government the power to
intervene in state affairs to protect
their rights.
Civil Rights Act of 1866
• President Johnson vetoed
both bills arguing that
Congress did not yet
include representatives
from all states hence any
bills passed were void.
Civil Rights Act of 1866
• The Radical Republicans had a large
enough majority to override the
President and both bills became law.
The Fourteenth Amendment
• Fearing that the Civil Rights Act might
be overturned in court, Congress
moved quickly to amend the
Constitution.
The Fourteenth Amendment
• The 14th Amendment granted full
citizenship to all people born in the
United States.
• The Radicals then made ratification of
the amendment another requirement
for southern states to be readmitted
Radicals in full control
• President Johnson was now
powerless.
• The Radical Republicans could
override any veto the President might
make.
Radicals in full control
• This period of time came to be known
as Radical Reconstruction.
States rejoining the Union
• After taking oaths to the Union, many
white southerners refused to vote in
elections for their new state
governments.
States rejoining the Union
• However, newly registered
African Americans did vote.
• African American
overwhelmingly voted in
Republican candidates giving the
Radical Republicans control of
the federal government as well as
the state governments.
States rejoining the Union
• By 1870 all southern states had
rejoined the Union.
President vs. Congress
• The Radicals quickly moved to limit
the power of the President as much
as possible.
Tenure of Office Act
• Law passed by Congress stating that
the President cannot remove any
government official without the
authorization of Congress.
• Johnson blatantly defied the act by
removing Secretary of War Edwin
Stanton in August of 1867.
Impeachment
• Outraged by Johnson’s actions,
Congress began impeachment
hearings on the President.
• Congress came within one vote of
getting the 2/3 majority needed to
impeach the President.
Impeachment
• Johnson stayed in office until his term
ended in March 1869.
New President
• The Republicans nominated Ulysses
S. Grant to run for President.
• Grant was still extremely popular and
won an easy victory.
15th Amendment
• Passed in 1869 it prohibited state
governments and the federal
government from denying the right to
vote to any male citizen regardless of
race.