Roger Brooke Taney made history in the 1857 Dred Scott Case by ruling that black slaves were not citizens of the United States. This controversial historical figure died on October 12, 1864, in Washington, D.C.
One of Robert’s most famous quotes was "What Dred Scott's master might lawfully do with Dred Scott, in the free state of Illinois, every other master may lawfully do with any other one, or 1,000 slaves, in Illinois, or in any other free state."What Robert is saying is that a master of a slave can do whatever he/she wants with that slave. By the time Roger B Taney became Chief Justice, Taney had become a staunch supporter of slavery, even though he had manumitted eleven slaves he inherited as a young man and made anti-slavery statements when serving as defense
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Taney passed the bar in 1799. That same year, he turned to politics. A member of the Federalist Party, Taney was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates. In 1816, he earned a seat in the Maryland Senate as a Democratic Republican, serving a five-year term. Taney then supported Democratic candidate Andrew Jackson's successful 1828 run for the U.S. presidency. In turn, President Jackson made Taney Attorney General in 1831. In this role, Taney assisted the president in dismantling the Second Bank of the United States. This led to a recess appointment as Secretary of the Treasury in 1833. However, Taney’s nomination was rejected by a Senate vote of 28-18,—marking the first time Congress had nixed a presidential nominee's confirmation for a Cabinet post. President Andrew Jackson attempted to reward his colleague once again for his devotion with a Supreme Court appointment in 1835, but the Senate rejected the appointment due to Taney's controversial undoing of the bank. When Chief Justice John Marshall died in 1836, Jackson renominated his ally and Taney was confirmed, becoming the fifth Supreme Court Chief Justice as well as the first Roman Catholic to lead the United States' highest