Andrew Jackson, Democratic or Not? Andrew Jackson, the United States 7th president, was so popular that he was still getting votes for the presidential election 15 years after he died! Andrew Jackson grew up as a poor child losing his father before he was born. At 13 year old he lost his mother. Jackson was known as a rambunctious teenager, getting into fights and pulling pranks. At age 17, Jackson grew up a bit starting his study of the law. Much later at age 21, Jackson was named Tennessee’s first representative in the U.S. House of Representatives and a year later was elected to the U.S. Senate. Andrew Jackson early political career was not the reason for his popularity. After the Battle of New Orleans, Andrew Jackson became a war hero. …show more content…
A native stated, “We wish to remain on the land of our fathers.” (Doc 9: Memorial of the Cherokee Nation). Andrew Jackson’s treatment of the Natives was undemocratic. He forced the Natives out of the land of their fathers. The Natives had their whole lives in that land and moving them into unfamiliar territory was unfair and undemocratic. The Natives also stated, “All our neighbors… would speak a language totally different from ours, and practice different customs…” (Doc 9: Memorial of the Cherokee Nation). Jackson was undemocratic because he forced the native to adjust new and different customs and new languages than everyone else around them. Andrew Jackson was undemocratic because he forced the Native Americans to move. Another reason he was undemocratic was because of the spoils …show more content…
“Jackson’s use of the presidential veto squashes the majority vote of both houses of congress and extends the power of the president” (Doc 5: Daniel Webster, July 11th, 1882). Jackson use of the veto squashes the majority vote so the people don’t have a choice in the matter. It also shows that Jackson abused his presidential power. “Jackson words encourage a kind of class war between rich and poor” (Doc 5: Daniel Webster, July 11th, 1882). Jackson talks about how the rich are to gain and the poor would not. It seemed as if he was pushing a class war upon the country. The veto of the National Bank was undemocratic because it gave the people no
“By 1837, the Jackson administration had removed 46,000 Native American people from their land east of the Mississippi, and had secured treaties which led to the removal of a slightly larger number ( indian removal policy). In 1830, just a year after taking office, Jackson pushed a new piece of legislation called the "Indian Removal Act" through both houses of Congress. It gave the president power to negotiate removal treaties with Indian tribes living east of the Mississippi. Under these treaties, the Indians were to give up their lands east of the Mississippi in exchange for lands to the west.” Jackson saw the indians as paternalistic and patronizing -- he described them as children in need of guidance. He clearly wanted them gone. In this piece of text evidence it says that Jackson pushed the indian removal policy through both houses of congress which shows that he enforces what he wants
Andrew Jackson, born on March 15,1767 was the 7th president of the United States, who was a self made man, rising to money and power. He is viewed as a controversial historical figure in American history between being a hero or villain. Andrew Jackson is a villain due to his controversial decisions during his presidency, such as the spoils system, the nullification crisis, the Second Bank of the United States, and lastly the most impactful decision, the Indian Removal Policy. Jackson may have been seen as the common man leader,and did many things to benefit the people, but that can not justify his unacceptable actions.
“It sows...the seeds of jealousy and ill-will against the government of which its author is the official head” (Daniel Webster’s Reply to Jackson’s Bank Veto Message - July 11, 1832). He is refusing to acknowledge that the government can do any good, and that the power comes from the people; however, the government officials have been elected by the people. “consequence of denying the government the service of an elite bureaucracy in order to serve some idealistic democratic principle” (excerpt from The Life of Andrew Jackson). Democracy is when all people have a fair and equal say in government. In Jackson’s attempts to fulfill his idea of democracy, he was ignoring the peoples representation in government, which was how he got elected in the first
President Jackson acted undemocratically because of his actions against the national bank. On July 10th, 1832, Jackson sent a bank veto message to congress. The message was sent to remove the US National Bank because it was only helpful for a wealthier class for things like investments. Citizens from wealthier classes were outraged by Jackson’s actions. Former senator Daniel Webster replied to Jackson message saying, “It manifestly seeks to
Old Hickory, the man on the twenty-dollar bill, Colonel Jackson and from 1829-1837: Mr. President. Andrew Jackson, the seventh president of the United States, may be the most interesting man to reside in the White House. Thomas Jefferson described Jackson as “a dangerous man… could barely speak because of the rashness of his feelings.” This deep passion concerning his ideals captured the public’s eye in the election of 1824, where he won the popular vote but not the electoral votes. The House of Representatives were given the final say and nominated John Quincy Adams to be the sixth president. Jackson ran and won in the next two elections. Through looking at his life, views, and work; it is easy to see Andrew Jackson is the most polarizing United States president.
One way Andrew Jackson was not democratic was by instituting and following through with the Indian Removal Act without consent or advice from the tribes who were affected. As stated in document 5, Jackson believed that “[The native americans] cannot live in contact with a civilized community and prosper.” This shows his ignorance to their culture and beliefs, and borderline racism by insinuating that their practices and communities as a whole are not civilized. Along with this, document 6 shows how Jackson forcefully moved the natives hundreds of miles from their homelands to be secluded from the rest of the country. Although he had his reasons, this was in no way democratic or even
Andrew Jackson was the seventh president of the United States and served as President from 1829-1837. He won his presidency on his second attempt to run for President; his first attempt ended with John Quincey Adams winning even though Jackson won the popular and electoral votes. He was a war hero during the Battle of New Orleans which was the final battle of 1812, leading people to believe that he was the reason America won the war. This lead to an increase in Andrew Jackson’s popularity in the election of 1828 as well as he ran off of the position that he was the President of the “common man”. Although Andrew Jackson politically changed the face of the Democratic Party in America, he however abused his Presidential powers, by significantly
He used his powers the president to make sure that state rights were protected and that the federal government could not violate them. An example of this is when he vetoed a bill proposing that the federal government would build a road from Maysville, Kentucky to Lexington, Kentucky. Andrew Jackson felt that the decision of constructing a road should be left to the state. Another thing that Andrew Jackson strongly opposed was the National Bank. During his presidency, Andrew Jackson vetoed the contract for National Bank, he saw it has a source of some of the country’s economic issues. The reason he vetoed the contract is because he believed that the bank was a monopoly that was run by higher class. This statement allowed him to gain more support from the people and allowed him to win the election of 1832. Another political decision that helped him be the man of the people was Indian Removal Act. Though the Indian Removal Act had controversy, most Americans saw it as something good since it allowed them to have more land. Among the negative view of him because of the Indian Removal Act, he also passed tariffs and the Force Bill, which created some concerns on were his intentions
Andrew Jackson (1767-1845), Americas seventh President, was born into poverty and became wealthy as a Tennessee lawyer and politician by 1812. His leadership developed while the United States and Britain fought against one another. Throughout the battle Jackson showed great leadership skills and direction. Some say he became America’s most influential and polarizing political figure between the 1820 and 1830. Jackson first ran for President in the 1824 presidential election losing in a close race to John Quincy Adams. Four years later Jackson defeated Adams to become the Seventh President of the United States. America’s political party’s evolved and Jackson was the leader of the Democratic Party. He was a big supporter of states’
In the nineteenth century, a great figure emerged from the common folk of America: Andrew Jackson. Andrew Jackson grew up as an orphan, facing many hardships. Jackson grew up in Lancaster, North Carolina along with his two brothers, Hugh and Robert. When the War of 1812 had begun, Jackson turned out to be a spectacular fighter, leading the country to victory at the Battle of New Orleans. Following the war, Jackson became the seventh president of the United State, resulting in several questionable actions. Andrew Jackson was a prominent figure in his early life and war experiences, presidency, and post-presidency.
What did Webster tell Jackson after he abolished the bank? “You need to take a chill BILL.”At the age of 13, Andrew Jackson participated in the Revolutionary War and then returned home to the death of his mother, and experienced life as an orphan. As the years went on, Jackson became less violent and at the age of 17 he started to study law. This level of education, lead him to becoming Tennessee 's first representative at the age of 29. After one year, Jackson was the elected and before he knew it, he was the U.S senate. After the Battle of New Orleans, Jackson was considered a national war hero and his political career or status was well known. Jackson lost the presidential election of 1824, and ran again in the election of 1828 with hopes to become president and produce a democratic nation. This raises the question, “How democratic was Andrew Jackson?” Democracy, is often defined as socially or politically equal. Andrew Jackson was ultimately undemocratic because of his imbalanced treatment toward the Indians, his blind judgment when making important decisions, and his consistent hypocritical behaviors.
One of the challenges faced with the decision to veto the bill was how the American people felt on the issue. Jackson did not take into account how this would affect the country and the people living within it. "This was personal misfortune, undeserved and severe. The more important victim was the American people. For with destruction of the United States Bank there was removed from an overexcitable economy the influence most effective in moderating its booms and depressions."6 In spite of the American people and their opinion, Jackson acted on his own and in doing so made decisions that were not for him to do without having something to back up his words. In his famous veto message, he declared the bank “unconstitutional” whereas the Supreme Court would have never declared the Bank constitution nor Congress if that were the case.7 Even some of the great people from the past supported the very thing Jackson
Along with going against the supreme court, Jackson attempted to destroy the National Bank by placing federal funds into state banks. This made banks cater to rich white men, which is not what the sum of American citizens were. Not only were the needs of working white men excluded but attempted to say the bank wasn't in part of the constitution. Which contradicts the supreme court's ruling of the fact that indeed the Federal Bank is constitutional.
As part of Andrew Jackson's Indian removal policy, the Cherokees were forced to give up lands east of the Mississippi River and to move to an area in Oklahoma. President Andrew Jackson is unconstitutional because he abuses his power as president as well as threaten the people and the national bank. Also Jackson acts like a king and puts himself above everybody.
One of the best things about Andrew Jackson is the fact that he was never handed a thing, which formed his political viewings. His father died before he was even born, and his life just got more difficult from there. At the age of 13, he became involved with the Revolutionary War, where he served as a courier for the local militia. It was also during this war that both of his brothers were captured and killed by the British. He worked labor intensive jobs until he began to study law and pursue and political and legal career in Tennessee, and because he did not come from a well-known family, he had to succeed through his own merit.