What were Warren G. Harding's failures as president?

Answer 1

Pierce supported the passing of the Kansas- Nebraska Act that created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska but also let them decide whether to have slavery. Since Nebraska was certain to vote to be a free state Kansas would have to be slave state in order to keep the balance of slave and free states and both sides sent outsiders into Kansas to try to influence the election. Violence erupted and Pierce did not do anything effective to stop it. The division of the nation over slavery came to the forefront again and the Compromise of 1850 appeared doomed to failure. Instead of seeing an end to hostility over slavery, Pierce saw the situation grow worse.

Pierce also made a move to buy Cuba from Spain. which not only failed but caused a domestic and international uproar when news leaked that his administration was considering going to war to take Cuba if it could not be bought.
The failure of the Kansas-Nebraska act to diffuse the slavery issue was Pierce's downfall. Pierce pushed for its passage and contributed to the problem by failing to act quickly when violence broke out in Kansas.

Answer 2

The overwhelming issue facing Pierce and the nation was slavery-- would it be abolished throughout the country? Would it be allowed in new states" Did free states have to return escaped slaves to their owners? Did states have the right to secede or nullify federal law? Would a balance be kept between slave and free states?