Historian A: James McPherson – Economic Perspective "James McPherson argues that economic differences played a crucial role in causing the Civil War. He emphasizes the growing divide between the industrial North and the agricultural South, highlighting how states' rights were used as a tool to protect Southern economic interests, especially slavery. McPherson suggests that the conflict over tariffs, trade policies, and economic independence fueled Southern fears of economic marginalization and prompted the push for secession as a defense of their economic way of life. He views states' rights as intertwined with economic motivations that ultimately led to war."

Historian B: Eric Foner – Social Perspective "Eric Foner contends that states' rights were primarily a social and cultural defense of slavery and Southern social hierarchy. He argues that Southern states invoked states' rights to preserve slavery and their social order, rather than solely economic concerns. Foner emphasizes that the desire to maintain racial slavery and social dominance was central to the Southern states' justification for secession. He sees states' rights as a means to uphold their social values, which inevitably led to conflict with the abolitionist North."