Question

In 1846, Congressman David Wilmot proposed to: Group of answer choices prohibit slavery from all territory acquired from Mexico. allow voters to decide the status of slavery in new territories. divide the Oregon Country between Great Britain and the United States. annex Cuba to avoid southern secession. allow slavery to expand into California and New Mexico.

Answer 1

In 1846, Congressman David Wilmot proposed the Wilmot Proviso to prohibit slavery in all territories acquired from Mexico, which passed the House but failed in the Senate and intensified national debate over slavery.

Step-by-step explanation:

In 1846, Congressman David Wilmot proposed the Wilmot Proviso, which sought to prohibit slavery from all territories acquired from Mexico. This legislative proposal was introduced as an amendment to an appropriations bill and passed in the House of Representatives but failed in the Senate. Although it never became law, the debate surrounding the Wilmot Proviso intensified the sectional tensions between the North and South and contributed to the discussion on the future of slavery in the United States. The proviso had northern support as it aligned with interests to keep western territories free of slavery for the benefit of White laborers.

The significance of the Wilmot Proviso lay in its clear stance against the expansion of slavery, reinvigorating the slavery issue in national politics and ultimately contributing to the ascension of new single-issue parties like the Free-Soil Party. Despite its failure to become law, the Wilmot Proviso became emblematic of the deep divisions regarding slavery, which persisted up to the Civil War. Notably, Congressman Wilmot's efforts reflected a broader antislavery sentiment, where the principle of restricting the spread of slavery in new territories was paramount.

Answer 2

The correct answer is A) prohibit slavery from all territory acquired from Mexico.

In 1846, Congressman David Wilmot proposed to prohibit slavery from all territory acquired from Mexico.

After the United States won the Mexican-American War (1846-1848), it gained large territories. The Wilmot Proviso tried to eliminate the use of slaves in those recently acquired lands. It was David Wilmot, a Congressman from the state of Pennsylvania, who proposed the the proviso.

David Wilmot was a representative from Pennsylvania in the United States Congress, who introduced this legislation to the House on August 8, 1846. In the end, the proviso was not successful and this represented a major cause for the American Civil War.