The Dawes Severalty Act of 1887 was seen at the time as the best possible way to deal with the “Indian Problem.” United States lawmakers perceived that white settlers and Native people could not peacefully coexist under the current situation where racial, cultural, and political differences were so great. The Dawes Severalty Act, named for its sponsor, Senator Henry Dawes, proposed to “Americanize” the native population. The first step was to discourage the Native population from collective ownership—individual property rights would naturally cause them to experience life much like an American citizen. To this end the American government began to divide Native land among individuals and force Native people to abandon their conventional economic practices, embracing widespread agriculture. Finally, the government envisioned that it could sell what land was not required by Native individuals to white settlers and thereby open up new sections of the continent to American expansion.

The Compact Theory maintains that the United States Constitution was created by the agreement of the States; therefore, if the states disagree with the direction or interpretation of the Constitution, then they have the right to dissolve it. Thomas Jefferson was a notable proponent of this opinion, arguing passionately for it in the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions.

In the case Dred Scott v. Sandford, the Supreme Court, under Chief Justice Roger Taney, ruled that African Americans were not United States citizens and therefore had no right to bring a case before the Supreme Court, and that the Missouri Compromise was unconstitutional because it threatened the protected right to own property; furthermore, it stated that the Federal government had no right to regulate slavery in the territories. Taney and the other Justices had intended this ruling to be the end of the slavery expansion issue; however, it was not universally accepted: the Republican Party in particular treated it as an immoral legal precedent.

The Freeport Doctrine was first proposed by Stephen Douglas in one of his debates with future President, Abraham Lincoln. The Lincoln-Douglas debates are an important historical argument. In 1858 Lincoln and Douglas were both campaigning to represent the state of Illinois in the Senate. Lincoln represented the Republican Party, and Douglas the Democratic. The central issue of the seven debates was slavery—primarily whether it should be expanded into the territories or not. Douglas articulated that the issue of slavery in newly acquired states and territories should ignore the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Dred Scott v. Sandford case and instead allow the people of the territory to vote and choose for themselves. This opinion is known as The Freeport Doctrine. The issues of the 1858 Congressional debates would mirror the debates Lincoln would deal with during his Presidential campaign, and again, once he was in office. 

The politics of the United States after the end of the Era of Good Feelings, and before the outbreak of Civil War, was characterized by regional identities. The North was strongly in favor of tariffs to protect Northern business interests. The West desired the improvement of internal infrastructure to open up greater areas of the West to settlement and economic expansion. The South wanted to ensure the continuation of the institution of slavery and heavily opposed the North's desire for greater tariffs, as this generally hurt Southern interests.

The correct pairings are as follows:

Daniel Webster: North

John Quincy Adams: North

Henry Clay: West

Andrew Jackson: West

John C. Calhoun: South

The Copperheads were groups of anti-War Democrats that sprang up in late 1862. As the War began stalling out for the Union, many opponents of Lincoln's Republican party began calling for an end to all hostilities. Initially operating as underground societies, Republicans called them Copperheads after the venomous snake. The Copperheads themselves adopted the name, and wore with pride the head of liberty from a copper penny. The main Copperhead leader, Representative Clement Vallandingham of Ohio, was arrested for treason in 1863, and had to flee to Canada. War successes throughout 1863 led to a cratering of public support for the Copperhead cause.

George Washington’s farewell address is perhaps the most famous in the history of the United States Presidency. In his speech, Washington warned against the subservience of the people to political parties. He also praised American political system and provided the above quote as a constant reminder to the American people of the power that democracy gives them. 

If the Gettysburg Address is not instantly familiar, the references to "Civil War" and a "great battlefield" are great indicators that this statement occurred during the time the Civil War was ongoing. Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address in November of 1863, four and a half months after the Battle of Gettysburg, but in the middle of continuous fighting. Lincoln's speech helped dedicate the Soldiers' National Cemetery at the Gettysburg battlefield.

In 1860, only the most radical abolitionists were openly advocating for an immediate end to all slavery. The Republican Party had formed as an anti-slavery party in the 1850s, but only advocated in its 1860 platform that slavery should be contained where it already was practiced. The Southern states did not trust even this statement about slavery, and upon Republican Abraham Lincoln's election in 1860, many southern states seceded from the Union.

In the late-nineteenth century, during what is known as the "Third Party System," both the Republican and Democractic parties split into multiple factions. The Democrats had three broad bases of support: Southern Whites, favoring populist economics and racial political appeals; Northern Urban residents, favoring populist economics and labor movements; and the Bourbon Democrats. The Bourbons, referring to conservative factions in Europe, combining support of laissez-faire capitalism, particularly siding with fewer restrictions on banks, railroads, and other corporations, with vigorous civil service reform, as the Bourbons were sworn enemies of the bosses that controlled the party in large cities.