No more so than the New York media currently control the elections.
The New York businessmen had influence with Lincoln, and *HE* controlled the Army and the Navy. In regards to Southern independence, the primary necessities of both groups aligned.
Lincoln's government needed the import tariff money caused by Southern exports, and Northern Eastern Businessmen not only wanted the revenue stream from Southern exports they had been enjoying for decades, but they wanted to prevent competition created by millions of dollars worth of capitalization which would occur in the South if it were allowed to remain independent.
The answer to both concerns was war to reestablish control of those revenue producing areas.
In discussions of the Morrill Tariff, the condition of the US Treasury is forgotten.
In the larger scheme of things, the loss to the Federal Government of tariff revenue was the lesser issue. Far more money than that was at stake if the South remained independent.
..............US Government Spending for 1857-1860
...............(Historical Statistics of the US, pg. 106)
Year..........Total Fed.Spending..........Total Fed.Spending on military,interest on ............................................................Public Debt., and pensions
1857...............67,796,000...............35,400,000
1858...............74,185,000...............34,300,000
1859...............69,071,000...............29,700,000
1860...............63,131,000...............33,100,000
Some criticized him because of the massive debt his administration accumulated.
Yes, debt did increase dramatically, but in the other table above, the data says that with an exception in 1858, that federal spending was declining.
If Buchanan and his people are at fault, then they are responsible for declining federal spending.
But debt was increasing!! Why?