Transcript Andrew Jackson`s Presidency

Election of 1824
• Election of 1824: 4 Dem-Reps campaigned for President
in a bitter election…no Federalists (shocking)
– John Quincy Adams: son of John Adams, Sec. of
State
– Henry Clay: Speaker of the House
– William Crawford: Sec. of Treasury
– Andrew Jackson: War of 1812 hero
• This election marks the end of the DemRep vs. Federalist framework of US
politics.
The “Corrupt Bargain”
• Jackson won popular vote, but not the electoral college
• Decision goes to House of Reps…decide between top
two candidates (Jackson and Adams)
• Speaker of House: Clay…hates Jackson (fought against
each other for western votes)
• Clay forms coalition of reps from Ohio Valley and New
England to oppose Jackson (who was supported by
southerners and westerners). House elects John
Quincy Adams as President
• In exchange for the votes in the House, JQA appoints
Clay as his Secretary of State
• Jackson was sure that secret political maneuvers were
responsible for JQA’s win…”Corrupt Bargain”
The “Revolution” of 1828
• JQA ran for reelection
• Jacksonians started a mudslinging
campaign against JQA
• 3x the number of voters participated in the
election of 1828 than the previous election
• Jackson won easily
– Reputation as a war hero
– Appealed to the “Common Man” (humble
beginnings, man of the western frontier, etc.)
President Andrew Jackson:
1829-1837
• Jackson was nicknamed "Old Hickory" because of his
toughness and aggressive personality; he fought in duels
and was a rich slaveholder who appealed to the common
men of the United States. He was also one of the war
heroes from the War of 1812.
At A Glance:
The Presidency of Andrew Jackson…
• Andrew Jackson was the 7th president of the U.S. and
his forceful actions earned him both strong support
and angry opposition throughout the country.
• As President of the United States, Jackson…
• Fired more than 2,000 government workers and replaced
them with his own supporters
• Vetoed more acts of Congress than all previous presidents
combined
• Closed the Bank of the United States
• Threatened to send a huge army to South Carolina to force
the state to obey tariff laws
• Used the Indian Removal Act to force 100,000 Native
Americans from their homeland
The Champion of the Common
Man
• Jackson presented himself as the representative of all
the people and the protector of the common man
against the abuses of power by the rich and privileged
• Opposed increasing federal spending and the national
debt
• Champion of the Common Woman: Peggy Eaton Affair
– She faced discrimination in the cabinet by other
cabinet wives (suspected of being an adulteress)
– Jackson tried to force cabinet wives to accept
her…most of the cabinet resigned…including VP
John C. Calhoun
The Spoils System &
Civil Service Reform
• The spoils system gave government jobs to people who had
worked to help their political party win the election. This method
is called the spoils system because of the saying “to the victor
belong the spoils (rewards)”. After President James Garfield was
assassinated in 1881, by a disappointed office seeker, people
began to demand reform.
• The Pendleton Act of 1883 marked the beginning of civil
service reform:
• It provided that competitive exams would be used to hire some
government workers.
• It set up a commission to administer civil service tests
• It banned the common practice of forcing government employees
to give money to political parties
The Nullification Crisis:
States’ Rights vs. Federal Supremacy
• The southern states opposed tariffs (tax on imports) which resulted in
higher prices for imported manufactured goods. The agricultural south
saw northern industries as the chief beneficiaries of such tariffs.
• John C. Calhoun of South Carolina, Jackson’s first vice president
protested the tariff of 1828. People of the south called it the “tariff of
abominations” because it hurt their economy which was based on the
export of cotton. John C. Calhoun argued that states had the right to
nullify, or declare void, any federal law the state considered
unconstitutional.
• In 1832, a new lower tariff was passed, but South Carolina nullified the
tariff. President Andrew Jackson declared South Carolina’s actions
treasonous.
• The crisis was resolved after Congress agreed to a gradual lowering of
the tariff and passed a Force Bill authorizing the use of federal troops in
South Carolina to collect the tariff. South Carolina withdrew its
nullification of the tariff. However, South Carolina nullified the Force Bill;
indicating the issue was not permanently settled.
The National Bank Issue –
Jackson’ War on the Bank
• The Second Bank of the U.S. was controversial. Most opposition to
the national bank came from southerners and westerners, who resented
the national bank’s control over state banking. The national bank had
originally been created while George Washington was president, but its
charter (legal document granting rights and privileges) was due for
renewal when Jackson was president.
• Jackson disliked the bank. He believed the men who ran the bank were
corrupt. He called the men of “special privilege” because he believed
they grew rich with public money.
• In 1832, President Jackson vetoed a bill to re-charter the bank. Jackson
vetoed it because: 1) he believed it was unconstitutional, and 2) because
he believed the banks helped the rich people at the expense of the poor
(common) people.
• He then withdrew federal money from the bank, effectively killing it. He
put the money in state banks called “pet banks”. To Jackson and many
of his followers, the Second Bank of the United States had symbolized
privilege and the power of special northern interests.
Native Americans &
The Indian Removal Act
• As American settlers moved westward in the 1800s, conflict
continued with Native Americans who lived in these territories.
• The federal government used a combination of treaties and force
to move Native Americans to lands west of the Mississippi River.
The treaties were worthless, because Native Americans
were repeatedly forced to give up their land that had been
guaranteed by the treaty.
• In the 1830s, President Jackson began his Indian removal policy
through the Indian Removal Act that forced all Native
Americans to move west of the Mississippi River. In 1832, the
Cherokee went to court to prevent the state of Georgia from
taking their land. In Worcester v. Georgia, Chief Justice John
Marshall ruled that the state of Georgia had no authority
over Cherokee territory, but Georgia simply ignored the ruling.
In 1838, the U.S. Army rounded up the Cherokee and moved
them west in a forced march known as the Trail of Tears.
Native Americans &
The Indian Removal Act
• The Seminole Indians of Florida were also faced with
removal. A group fought the effort in the Second Seminole
War. Many remained in Florida. By the 1840s, however, only
scattered groups of Native Americans lived in the East.
• “The consequences of a speedy removal will be
important…it will separate the Indians from
immediate contact with settlements of whites…and
perhaps cause them…to cast off their savage habits
and become an interesting, civilized, and Christian
community”. -- President Andrew Jackson, 1830
• What does this quote reveal about Jackson’s attitude toward
Native Americans?
Jackson’s motto seemed to be
"To the victor belong the spoils,"
and he certainly employed the
"spoils system". One of his first
acts was to fire dozens of
federal employees, some who
had been there since the days of
George Washington. In their
place he appointed people who
had supported him. These
appointments did not always
work out so well. One member
had to quit after having a well
publicized affair.
In 1838 and 1839, as part of Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, the Cherokee nation
was forced to give up its lands east of the Mississippi River and to migrate to an area in
present-day Oklahoma. The Cherokee people called this journey the "Trail of Tears," because
of its devastating effects. The migrants faced hunger, disease, and exhaustion on the forced
march. Over 4,000 out of 15,000 of the Cherokees died. This picture, The Trail of Tears, was
painted by Robert Lindneux in 1942. It commemorates the suffering of the Cherokee people
under forced removal. If any depictions of the "Trail of Tears" were created at the time of the
march, they have not survived.
Andrew Jackson hated the idea of the Bank of the United States. He thought it
wasn’t fair to the poor people. He wanted to destroy it. The many-headed monster
is the states, who are fighting Jackson to keep the bank. Jackson raises a cane
that says “veto.”
New Political Parties Emerge
• During Jackson’s presidency, he emphasized
his viewpoint that the executive branch retains
power over the legislative branch
• This became the political platform of the
Jacksonian Democrats
• Henry Clay and others were united in their
opposition of Jackson’s “King-like” rule
• Historically, the term Whig was used to describe
people who fought against tyranny
• The party opposed to Jackson’s ideas were
called the Whigs.
• Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and other Whig leaders proclaimed
themselves defenders of popular liberties against the usurpation
of Jackson. Hostile cartoonists portrayed him as King Andrew I.
• Behind their accusations lay the fact that Jackson, unlike previous
Presidents, did not defer to (allow) Congress in policy-making but
used his power of the veto and his party leadership to
assume command. The greatest party battle centered around
the Second Bank of the United States, a private corporation but
virtually a government-sponsored monopoly. When Jackson
appeared hostile toward it, the bank threw its power against him.
• Clay and Webster, who had acted as attorneys for the Bank, led
the fight for its re-charter in Congress. "The bank," Jackson told
Martin Van Buren, "is trying to kill me, but I will kill it!" Jackson, in
vetoing the re-charter bill, charged the Bank with undue economic
privilege. His views won approval from the American electorate; in
1832 he polled more than 56 percent of the popular vote and
almost five times as many electoral votes as Clay.