The abolitionist Liberty party nominated Michigan's James G. Birney, while the 1844 Whig National Convention nominated Henry Clay on the first ballot. Notwithstanding that Polk had been Speaker of the House of Representatives and governor of Tennessee, Whig stump speakers scorned Polk, mocking him with the chant 'Who is James K. Polk?' in reference to Polk's relative obscurity compared to both Van Buren or Clay. The Whigs blanketed the nation with hundreds of thousands of anti-Polk tracts, accusing him of being a puppet of the 'slaveocracy' and a radical who would destroy the United States over the annexation of Texas. Democrats like Robert Walker recast the issue of Texas annexation, arguing that Texas and as Oregon were rightfully American but had been lost during the Monroe administration. Walker further argued that Texas would provide a market for Northern goods and would allow for the 'diffusion' of slavery, which in turn would lead to gradual emancipation. In response, Clay argued that the annexation of Texas would bring war with Mexico and increase sectional tensions.