Transcript Andrew Jackson: The Common Man

The Americans
 Page 262
Andrew Jackson
3 Column Chart
Kitchen Cabinet
Spoils System
Veto Power
For your assigned category give examples that
show Jackson’s changes in government.
Lime – Kitchen Cabinet
Yellow – Spoils System
Blue – Veto Power
The Americans – page 262 to 263
Upper Left Hand Column
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A
B
C
D
E
F
There should be one person of each color in your group
of 3.
Share your notes (verbally) with your group mates so
they can take down the notes on their chart
Andrew Jackson: The
Common Man
What makes him a common man?
 Born in poverty in North Carolina backcountry
 Son of Scotch-Irish immigrants
 First President without a college education
 Had careers in law, politics, land speculation,
cotton planting, and soldiering prior to
Presidency
Political Beliefs
 Believed he represented the nation as a
whole
 Disliked people who obtained power from
wealth
 Relied on Kitchen Cabinet – personal friends
who advised him in political and
governmental decisions
Actions as President
 Used spoils system, a practice in which he
fired and replaced 10% of government
employees with his loyal supporters
 Vetoed more bills than did all previous
Presidents combined
 Signed pork-barrel bills – those that benefited
his political friends
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You will still hear this phrase today!
Treatment of Indians
 Indian Removal Act of 1830 – forced Indians
west to land that later became Oklahoma
 Black Hawk War of 1832 – Illinois, Indians
who resisted Jackson’s plan slaughtered by
local militia
 Jackson’s removal of the Cherokees –
ignored the Supreme Court decision in
Worcester v Georgia (1832) allowing the
Cherokees to remain in Georgia
2 Major Issues of
Jackson’s Presidency
States’ Rights
Second Bank of the United States
States’ Rights
States’ Rights
 Senator Benton of
Missouri
 Proposal
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Unsold federal lands
be reduced in price or
given away
 Northern states
disagreed
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Power play by Western
states
Tariff of Abominations
 Tariff on British goods
 Caused hardships only to Southern states
 VP John Calhoun devised a nullification plan:
each state had the right to nullify (cancel) a
national law (tariff) within its borders if it felt
that the law was unconstitutional
 South Carolina threatened to secede
(withdraw) from the Union if forced to pay
tariffs any longer
National Debate
January 1830
 Senator Robert Hayne
 Senator Daniel Webster
 South Carolina
 Massachusetts
 States’ Rights
 Federal Rights
Jackson decides
 To support federal rights
 Disagrees with his VP
 Decides that Martin Van Buren will be his VP
candidate in 1832 election
Outcome
 Force Bill (1833) legalized the use of federal
militia against the state
 South Carolina repealed (ended) its
nullification ordinance in response to the
Force Bill
Second Bank of the
United States
Banks . . .
 Jackson considered them a symbol of the
privileged class, and therefore, a threat to
democracy.
 States considered them too strong a
competitor
 Farmers distrusted paper money issued by
bank; preferred hard money
 Bank Leader, Nicholas Biddle, was disliked
 1831: Senator Benton (Missouri) introduced a
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resolution against renewing the bank
Bank became most important issue of 1832 Election
Jackson moved federal funds ($) into chosen state
banks (known as pet banks by opponents)
Biddle refuses loans to new businesses (1832-1833)
due to large amount of federal money removed from
banks
State banks – printed more $ than what was
deposited – value of $ declines
Outcome
 US financial capital moved from Philadelphia
to New York (still there today!)
 Formation of Whig Party
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Supporters of States’ Rights
People who opposed Jackson’s bank policies
Opposed a chief executive having too much
power
Chapter 10 Section 3
 Daily Activity – Nullification Crisis
 Enrichment Activity – Henry Clay and the
Bank