David Wilmot
David Wilmot
David Wilmot (January 20, 1814 – March 16, 1868) was a U.S. politician; he was elected to the U.S. Congress, serving 1845–1851, and to the U.S. Senate, serving 1861–1863 to fill the remainder of a term. Wilmot was a Democrat, a Free Soiler, and a Republican. He was a sponsor and eponym of the Wilmot Proviso (1846), intended to ban slavery in western lands gained from Mexico in the Mexican–American War of 1846–1848. The proposal repeatedly passed the House of Representatives, but was defeated in the Senate, and never became law. However, it caused great anger and consternation in the South, and increased the prominence of the slavery issue on the national stage. Wilmot was instrumental in establishing the Republican Party in Pennsylvania. His opposition to slavery did not include the evolving abolitionist position of immediately ending the institution in the entire country. His views on race were instead related to defense of white free labor and, by today’s standards, could be classified as racist. He also served as a District Judge and on the US Court of Claims.