The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Westward
Jefferson’s
expansion
vision
led
“republicanism”
to all
increased
suffrage
did men
not
By
1840, more
than of
90%
of
adult white
forapply
“common”
in (“universal
the West
men because
in white
the “new
there
states”
were who
no
could
vote
male
suffrage”)
“virtuous
did not qualify
elite” to
in rule
the “older
for thestates”
people
As more western states
extended democracy to
“common men,” political
parties
in eastern
statesoffelt
But…this
extension
suffrage did not
pressure
to do the same
include African-Americans
or women

The 1830s & 1840s experienced:
 Massive voter turnout due to the growth of suffrage &
increased organization of political parties
 Direct methods of selecting presidential electors,
county officials, state judges, & governors (replaced
indirect methods by state legislatures)
Sec of State
under Monroe

Sec of Treasury
under Monroe
The election of 1824 was a 4-way race among
Dem-Republicans:
 John Quincy Adams represented New England
 William Crawford represented the South
 Henry Clay & Andrew Jackson represented the West

Jackson won the popular vote but not a majority of
electoral votes
Speaker of the Not taken seriously at first;
House; author of but “war hero” status made
American System Jackson a nat’l candidate
But, because no one candidate received 51%
JQ
Adams
won
NE
Adams
won
when
of the electoral votes, theLed
House
of Repsthat
had
to charges
Henry
threw
toClay
determine
the
Adams hadwinner
"bought"
Crawford
won
VAhis
butpresidential
support
him
few
other behind
Southern
states the presidency
(Corrupt Bargain!!)
Clay’s influence
was limited to a few
western states
Jackson did well in
the South & the West
One exception:
the National Road

Adams had a difficult presidency:
 JQ Adams wanted to continue the nationalist programs
of the “Era of Good Feelings”
 The depression of 1819 limited the nationalist agenda &
few of Adams’ policies became law
 A protective tariff was passed to help farmers &
industry, but this angered the South

But, these “Jacksonian Democrats” are not
going to mirror the “Jeffersonian Republicans”
“Jacksonians” prepared for the election of 1828 by
creating a well-organized, national campaign

Jackson (TN) formed a coalition with Adams’ VP
Calhoun (SC), Van Buren (NY), & 2 newspaper editors
(KY) to rival JQ Adams

Formed the basis of 1st modern political party, calling
themselves the “Democrats”
“Democrats” distinguished themselves as
different from the “Nationalist Republicans”
who has strayed from the Jeffersonian ideal
Democrats presented
Jackson as “Old Hickory,”
uneducated, a hero, a dueler
& a man of the people

The election of 1828 changed American politics:




Democrats
painted Adams
as an out-oftouch aristocrat
Showed the effectiveness of political parties in elections
It was the 1st election with overt mudslinging &
propaganda
Exciting appeals to average the man (public rallies &
barbeques)
Jackson
won
the election
as a “common man of
“Ms.
Jackson
is a bigamist”
the people”
& “Ms. Adams is a bastard”
is Andrew
Jackson?
Jackson’sWho
wild
& rowdy
inauguration

Jackson was a popular candidate but it was not
clear what type of president Jackson would be:
 Jackson’s supporters wanted states’ rights & limited
gov’t
 During the campaign, Jackson never clarified his stand
on major issues: banks, tariffs, etc.
 Only stood for Indian removal

In the 1820s & 1830s, America became more
democratic:
 Westward expansion facilitated the expansion of
suffrage for common white men
 Led to unprecedented voter participation by citizens
 Allowed for a new breed of “common man” politicians to
come to power

Review Questions:
 What did the term common man mean in the early 19th
century?
 In what ways were Presidents Washington, Adams,
Jefferson, Madison, & Monroe different from the
“common man”?

When Andrew Jackson was elected president, it
Jackson advocated
represented
a new era “negative
in Americanactivism”
history: &
increased
presidential
powers
by
using
the
 He was the first president that represented the
veto
moreman”
times than any previous president
“common
 His party (the Democrats) took advantage of the
extension of suffrage to common white men
 He greatly expanded the powers of the presidency

When Jackson was elected, he rewarded loyal
supporters with gov’t jobs (the spoils system)
 Massive turnover in the civil service had not yet occurred
 Rotation in office began to be seen as a very democratic
way to reduce
corruption
Jackson
wasgov’t
not the
1st to &doincompetence
this… he
just extended it to more people!

Only Sec of State Van Buren
remained loyal to Jackson
Jackson’ s presidency began rough with the
Petticoat Affair:
 His entire cabinet resigned when Jackson supported the
moral character of Sec of War John Eaton’s wife
 Jackson formed a new cabinet but relied almost
exclusively on his close friends & unofficial advisors (the
“Kitchen Cabinet”)
Kentucky was home of Henry Clay, who
Jackson
never forgave
for the
 The “National”
Republicans
led“Corrupt
by Clay & Bargain”
JQ

Adams split with the old-style DemocraticRepublicans
President Jackson dealt a blow to the American
System:
 He was OK with national projects but did not like
spending
money
for state
projects
Jacksonfederal
vetoed
7 other
bills
of public
 In 1830,
Jackson vetoed
funds for
the Maysville
Road
works
projects,
including
roads
and canals
because it was exclusively in Kentucky
“Tariff of Abominations”
Southerners hated tariffs for 2 main reasons: tariffs
increase the costs of foreign industrial goods (which are
 usually
By 1820,
the South
wasmade
anxious
about federal
cheaper
than those
in America)
so goods are
powers
over states:
more expensive
AND countries reciprocate with high
tariffs onthe
American
 VP Calhoun became
defendercotton
of “states’ rights”
 He wanted to protect slavery & hated industrial
protective tariffs
 After the Tariff of 1828 passed, the South affirmed
nullification (the right of an individual state to ignore
federal laws)
Calhoun (SC) led the argument for nullification in
Exposition & Protest in 1828 to protect Southern
rights against Northern self-interest


In 1833, Henry Clay presented a compromise
which severely lowered the tariff, SC withdrew
nullification, & Jackson did not have to enforce
the Force
Actthe Tariff of 1832;
4 years later, Congress
passed
South Carolina invoked nullification & refused to
collect tariff duties
Jackson viewed nullification as a treasonous threat
to the Union
 Congress
passed
the Force
Billto
tolower
makethe
S.C.Tariff
collect
This
1832 tariff
actually
intended
of tariff
taxes
Abominations,
but Southerners viewed the tariff as an
unconstitutional
of states’from
rights
 Jackson
threatened violation
to “hang Calhoun
the nearest
tree”

Significance of Nullification Crisis:
 Nullification implied that states had the right to declare
federal laws void & the right to secede from the Union
 More than any other president, Jackson asserted that
the central gov’t is supreme over the states & was
willing to use force to preserve federal authority
tariff
debates
among the
North, South, &
InThe
1829,
a NE
Congressmen
introduced
West
increased
rivalries
a bill
to slow sectional
western land
sales in the 1830s
(this bill was really an effort to keep
NE’s power in Congress from slipping)
Daniel Webster (MA)
countered: “Liberty &
Union, now & forever,
one & inseparable”
Robert Hayne (SC)
proposed nullification &
This
bill
led
to
sectional
tensions,
culminating
“Liberty
first &
an alliance between
in
the
Webster-Hayne
Debate
in
1830
Union
afterwards”
South & West against NE

Daniel Webster presented one of the most
significant arguments against states’ rights &
nullification
 The U.S. was more than just a compact of states…it was
a creation of the people
 The Constitution gave the national gov’t ultimate power
& supremacy over the states
 Nullification would lead to anarchy & civil war


Southerners were disappointed with JQ Adams’
slow movement in dealing with Indians
Jackson promised to act quickly but the Cherokee
were a problem:
 They were not “uncivilized” because they had a
republican gov’t, an agrarian lifestyle, & a formal
alphabet (Sequoyah)
 They refused to move from GA
Two more John Marshall decisions!!

When gold was discovered in GA, the GA gov’t
GA
defied
the
Supreme
Court’s
decisions
abolished Cherokee tribal rule & defied the
&
continued
to
take
Cherokee
lands
Constitution
Jackson
supported
“Marshall
 Jackson supported
theGA’s
statesdefiance:
& asked Congress
for the
Removal
Act of 1830now let him enforce it”
hasIndian
made
his decision,
 But…the Supreme Court ruled in Cherokee Nation v GA
(1831) & Worcester v GA (1832) that the states have no
power over tribes
In 1838, the U.S. Army forced the Cherokees west on
the “Trail of Tears”
In
1828,
the
national
gov’t
coined
only
a
 The major political issue of Jackson’s reign was his
limited
of paper
hard money
& printed
All of supply
America’s
bank notes
which financed
killing
the
Second
Bankatof&all
the
U.S.: growth
landofpurchases,
businesses,
economic
no paper
money
private,instate-chartered
banks
 Thecame
BUSfrom
held these
~$10 million
gov’t money &
made loans
to people & businesses
 The BUS helped control America’s 329 private, statechartered banks by forcing them to be smart when
nd BUS had 30 branches &
The
2
issuing loans
was biggest bank in America
These state-chartered banks had tendency to
issue more loans than they could support with
their “hard currency” reserves

But the BUS was controversial:
 Many blamed it for a depression in 1819 by
overextending credit & too quickly calling in loans
 Many people still viewed the BUS as an unconstitutional
monopoly that gave too much power to the upper class
 BUS manager Nicholas Biddle was effective, but seen as
arrogant, vain, & “aristocratic”
Congress was unable to override the veto



Since
entering
office
1828,
Jackson disliked
Jackson’s
veto
did in
not
immediately
kill the the
BUS
BUS…its charter would not end for 4 years
Clay, Webster, & Biddle worried about the future of
the BUS whose expiration was up in 1836
Congress re-chartered the BUS in 1832 but Jackson
vetoed it:

Claimed it unconstitutional, a violation of states’ rights,
& “dangerous
to people’sattacked
liberties” the bank as an
Jackson frequently
agency through which speculators &
monopolists cheated honest farmers


Jackson’s veto surprised the financial community
but was very popular in the South & West
Jackson made the BUS a key issue in the election
of 1832:
 Jackson defeated Henry Clay
 Jackson viewed his win as a mandate by the people to
continue his war against the BUS


Jackson attacked the BUS by withdrawing all
federal money & moved the funds to 23 state
banks
Jackson’s opponents argued that he overstepped
his authority:
 Unpopular in Jackson’s
cabinet
Favorable
state banks were
 Some who supported
his vetoorof“wildcat”
the re-charter
now
called “pet”
banks
questioned whether Jackson had gone too far &
Irony?
overstepped
powers
This his
move
effectively ended
Henry Clay’s American System
…and
Jackson’s
successor,
Martin
 Jackson issued the Specie Circular in 1836 to
Van
Buren,
will
have
to
deal
with
move U.S. away from paper money by
accepting only gold or silver (specie) for land
sales
 The economy sank & Panic of 1837 led to a 6year recession due to:
 Price inflation & the inconsistent extension
of credit by “pet” banks
 Drop in worldwide cotton prices

In 1834, an anti-Jackson coalition formed a new
party, the Whigs:
 Supported by ex-Federalists, “Clay Republicans,”
commercial farmers in the West & South, industrialists
in the NorthWere strongly opposed
to “King
Andrew”
 Supported a strong
national
gov’t & economic
regulation

The Whigs gained support during the Panic of 1837
& the recession

Andrew Jackson ushered in a new form of politics
by embracing the surge in democratic suffrage:
 Forming the Democratic Party, active campaigning, the
spoils system, & “common man” image
 Jackson’s liberal use of the veto strengthened
presidential power
 Opposition to Jackson led to the permanent two-party
system

The Good





The Bad





The Common Man involvement in Government
Strong Executive Power
Massive Voter Turnout
Sparked Re-Creation of 2 Party System
The Spoils System
Banking Instability
Excessive Check of the Supreme Court
Greater Sectionalism –Result of Split with Calhoun
The Ugly
 Native American Policy
 Trail of Tears
Analyze
Andrew
Jackson
Cartoon

Review Question:
 What characteristics of “Jacksonian politics” do we see
today?
 Which aspect of Jackson’s presidency was most
significant: strengthening the national gov’t by resisting
nullification OR damaging the economy during the Bank
War?