Texas Annexation - Legality Controversy

Legality Controversy

The formal controversy about the legality of the annexation of Texas stems from the fact that Congress approved the annexation of Texas as a territory with a simple majority vote approval instead of annexing the land by Treaty, as was done with Native American lands. After the United States and The Republic of Texas were unable to reach a Treaty agreement, Congress passed a Joint Resolution for Annexing Texas to the United States. The Republic of Texas's Annexation Convention then submitted the a Joint Resolution for Annexing Texas to the United States to popular vote in October 1845 and the public approved the measure. This Ordinance of Annexation was submitted and approved by the US House and Senate and signed by the President on December 29, 1845. While this was an awkward, if not unusual, treaty process it was fully accepted by all parties involved, and more importantly all parties performed on those agreements making them legally binding (see Contract law). In addition, the United States Supreme Court decided in the case of DeLima v. Bidwell, 182 U.S. 1 (1901), that annexation by a joint resolution of Congress was legal.