Since Abraham Lincoln first went into office, the Southern states felt threatened that he would abolish slavery, even though it was unconstitutional. Lincoln clearly stated, "I have no purpose directly to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists. I believe I have no lawful right to do so, and I have no indication to do so," (Lincoln's First Inaugural Address). In order to protect their property, which were their slaves, the South attempted to create their own government. They clearly fought for control of the government because they decided to create their own and were not satisfied with the current president. The South wanted a president that they felt would not threaten their property rights, which led them to declare themselves a new nation. While they were named the Confederate States of America, the South elected their own president, who was Jefferson Davis. The south also feared that Lincoln would propose a law to abolish slavery, and the North would have more representation than them due to a higher population. However, there were the same number of representatives for each state in the Senate, which would vote for the presented law. This supports the fact that the South fought the war for control of the government. Lincoln also never freed a single slave during his lifetime, which proved that the South had nothing to fear. Because the South fought for control of the government by creating their own government, the civil war was justified as actually being a civil war. .
Despite the fact that the American Civil War was a war within one country, other people strongly disagree. For example, the opposing side would argue that the issue of secession was never mentioned in the Constitution, which allowed the South to secede due to Amendment 10 (The Constitution). Amendment 10 states, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.