In April of 1866, Civil rights act was enacted in response to southern black codes. It granted new rights to blacks who were native born. They had the right to testify in court, to sue, and to buy property. Johnson vetoed the act claiming it would cause conflict between races and it was an invasion of states rights as well. In June of 1866, the Fourteenth Amendment was passed to the U.S. Constitution, and it guaranteed civil liberties for both native-born, naturalized, Americans, and prohibited any state from "depriving citizens of life, liberty, or property, without due process". .
The amendment granted the right to vote to all men twenty-one and older but Johnson opposed it on the grounds that it did not apply to Southerners who were without any representation in Congress. The state of Tennessee was the only one to ratify the amendment when others from Johnson's camp refused it, which then made moderate voters in the north begin leaning toward radicals. Radical Republicans in Congress moved vigorously to change Johnson's program. They had already gained the support of northerners who were dismayed to see Southerners keep many prewar leaders and impose many prewar restrictions upon Negroes. .
These people called the radicals swept the elections of November 1866, which resulted in two-thirds anti-Johnson majority in both the House and Senate. With the majority, Johnson had three consecutive vetoes that were overridden by Congress in 1867, where enough votes were mustered up to pass in the legislation and it was the first time a president had been overridden. In March of 1867 the Radical Republicans came up with their own plan of Reconstruction to place southerners under Military rule, and those same laws were passed and placed some restriction on the President. .
Johnson dismissed Edwin M. Stanton Secretary Of war for violating The Tenure of Office Act. Stanton had informed the president that five military governors no longer had to answer to the president and that the new chain of command would be passed from the Commander of the Army through the House of Representatives.
