Question

Why was Calhoun against the tariff of 1828?

Answer 1

Calhoun argued that the US Constitution was based on a pact by 13 sovereign states. He thought that if the Constitution was established by 13 sovereign states then each state had the right to nullify or reject a federal law that it considered unconstitutional

Answer 2

Calhoun, who opposed the federal imposition of the tariffs of 1828 and 1832 and argued that the U.S. Constitution gave states the right to block the enforcement of a federal law. In November 1832 South Carolina adopted the Ordinance of Nullification, declaring the tariffs null, void, and nonbinding in the state.