Question

After refusing to recognize Lincoln's ten percent plan, Congress passed the Davis Bill. What did it require?

A. The complete surrender of the Confederate states
B. A majority vote for readmission to the Union
C. A 50% oath of allegiance from former Confederates
D. The abolition of slavery in the Confederate states

Answer 1

The Davis Bill, or Wade-Davis Bill, demanded that 50% of voters in Confederate states take an 'iron-clad' oath of allegiance to the Union and draft new constitutions that abolished slavery, barring former Confederates from office unless they took this oath.

Step-by-step explanation:

After President Lincoln's Ten Percent Plan was deemed too lenient by Radical Republicans in Congress, the Wade-Davis Bill was passed by Congress. This bill required a stricter approach to Reconstruction, demanding that fifty percent of a state's voters take an "iron-clad" oath of loyalty to the Union and affirm they had never willingly supported the Confederacy. The bill further stipulated that these states must draft new constitutions abolishing slavery, and disallowed former Confederates from holding public office or voting unless they took this oath.

Ultimately, the bill sought to repudiate the debts of the Confederate government and ensure civil liberties for the freedpeople, with the added enforcement by federal courts. Despite congressional support, President Lincoln pocket vetoed the bill, preventing it from becoming law.