Missouri Compromise Theme of Federal Sovereignty

The Missouri Compromise went out of its way to make sure that the supremacy of the Federal government wasn't compromised in any way by the new state. After all, that was supposedly the whole point of Congress creating a fuss over the addition of Missouri.

First and foremost in the minds of Congress was the need to not upset the carefully constructed authority of the federal government of the states…because that would harken back to the Articles of Confederation. Nobody wanted that, not even the staunchest states rights advocates at the time.

• How might Missouri's introduction into the Union have threatened the Federal government?
• Why might Congress have mandated the usage of certain revenues for various public services?
• Was Congress successful in maintaining Federal sovereignty, or was it compromised?

Congress was eager to expand the Union, but was super-careful in doing so. It was necessary to ensure that the fundamental integrity of the Supremacy Clause wasn't undermined by the right of self-determination by new states.

Section 7 of the Missouri Compromise (mandating Congressional approval for Missouri's constitution) was arguably the most important factor of the Compromise's place in U.S. history: It set a legal precedent that allowed the federal government to retain all final say on state constitutions.