View full lesson: http://ed.ted.com/lessons/thelegisla...

You may think that things are heated in Washington today, but the KansasNebraska Act of 1854 had members of Congress so angry they pulled out their weapons and formed the Republican Party. The issues? Slavery and states' rights, which led the divided nation straight into the Civil War. Ben Labaree, Jr. explains how Abraham Lincoln's party emerged amidst the madness.

Lesson by Ben Labaree, Jr., animation by Qa'ed Mai.