--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Why was the amendment, expressly…" description: "\"Why was the amendment, expressly declaring the right of the people to exclude slavery, voted down? Plainly enough now, the adoption of it would have sp..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ed/abraham-lincoln-88_amendment_why-was-the-amendment-expressly-declarin_397196.png" --- # Why was the amendment, expressly declaring the right of… ![“Why was the amendment, expressly declaring the right of the people to exclude slavery, voted down? Plainly enough now, the adoption of it would have spoiled the niche for the Dred Scott decision.” quote by Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ed/abraham-lincoln-88_amendment_why-was-the-amendment-expressly-declarin_397196.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ed/abraham-lincoln-88_amendment_why-was-the-amendment-expressly-declarin_397196.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8ed/abraham-lincoln-88_amendment_why-was-the-amendment-expressly-declarin_397196.png) > “Why was the amendment, expressly declaring the right of the people to exclude slavery, voted down? Plainly enough now, the adoption of it would have spoiled the niche for the Dred Scott decision.” [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Lincoln argues the amendment was rejected to protect the Dred Scott decision’s political utility, preserving sectional balance. **In simple terms:** The amendment was blocked to keep the Dred Scott ruling intact. Key Takeaway Recognize how political interests can shape constitutional outcomes. Themes politics law slavery constitution Mood reflective critical Type historical political When to use this quote - legislative voting - civil rights advocacy - historical analysis Key Concepts balance of power judicial precedent political compromise Questions to Reflect On - What other laws have been shaped by similar compromises? - How might history differ if the amendment passed? A Different Perspective The decision prioritized short‑term political stability over moral progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Amendment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/amendment/) [Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision/) [Dred Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dred-scott/) [Niche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/niche/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [We think the Dred Scott decision is erroneous. We know the court that made it has often overruled its own decisions, and we shall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/we-think-the-dred-scott-decision-is-erroneous-we-know-the-court-that/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [Activist Supreme Courts are not new. 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Lenin and Stalin were authoritarian, but neither was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dinesh-d-souza/hitler-and-mussolini-were-indeed-authoritarians-but-it-doesn-t-follow/) [Dinesh D'Souza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dinesh-d-souza/) > [In the scale of American blunders - from the Dred Scott decision to the Neutrality Acts of the 1930s to the tragedy of Vietnam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-stephens/in-the-scale-of-american-blunders-from-the-dred-scott-decision-to-the/) [Bret Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-stephens/) > [ In one point of view, we, the abolitionists and colored people, should meet \[the Dred Scott\] decision, unlooked for and monstrous as it appears,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/in-one-point-of-view-we-the-abolitionists-and-colored-people-should/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Congress would exclude slavery from any territory that in the future might be acquired from Mexico.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wilmot/congress-would-exclude-slavery-from-any-territory-that-in-the-future/) David Wilmot > [“Haven't you heard, the Dread Scott decision has been overturned?" 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Nariman rightly found some similarity between the decision of the ADM Jabalpur and that of Dred Scott, rendered more than a century ago…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justice-asok-kumar-ganguly/f-s-nariman-rightly-found-some-similarity-between-the-decision-of-the/) [Justice Asok Kumar Ganguly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justice-asok-kumar-ganguly/) > [For black Americans, we know that gun control... sprouts from racist soil - be it after the or during the infamous Dred Scott case…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niger-innis/for-black-americans-we-know-that-gun-control-sprouts-from-racist-soil/) [Niger Innis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niger-innis/) > [“We may think we’ve given cats and dogs all sorts of rights, he says, but we can still buy, sell, and declaw them. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grimm/we-may-think-we-ve-given-cats-and-dogs-all-sorts-of-rights-he-says/) David Grimm ## More by Abraham Lincoln > [Elections belong to the people. It's their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/elections-belong-to-the-people-it-s-their-decision-if-they-decide-to/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [ Next came the Patent laws. These began in England in 1624; and, in this country, with the adoption of our constitution. 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