Andrew Jackson

Essential Question:

“Man of the People”?

OR

“King” Andrew?

Voting Requirements in the Early 19c

Voter Turnout: 1820 - 1860

Why Increased Democratization?  White male suffrage increased  Voters chose their state’s slate of Presidential electors.  Spoils system.  Rise of Third Parties.  Popular campaigning (parades, rallies, floats, etc.)  Two-party system returned in the 1832 election:

• Dem-Reps  Natl. Reps. Democrats • Whigs  Republicans (1854)

Expanding Electorate  Political equality grows more than economic equality for white males.  Until 1820s, relatively few white males could vote. – Most states restricted vote to property owners or taxpayers or both. Lower classes shut out.

Expanding Electorate

– Changes first came in west (now Midwest, OH, etc.) which were required to guarantee white male suffrage to join the union. Older states followed to try and keep people from moving west. – Number of voters grew faster than population growth. • 1800: Presidential electors chosen by state legislatures in 10 states; by people in only 6. • 1828: Electors chosen by people in all states but one (SC). • 1824: Fewer than 27% adult white males vote. 1828: 58%. 1840: 80%.

First Known Painting of Jackson, 1815

General Jackson During the Seminole Wars

The “Common Man’s” Presidential Candidate

Election of 1824 • More open political system develops • By 1824, most states allow popular vote (not state legislatures) to pick electors • Four regional candidates challenge candidate of congressional caucus • Democratic-Republicans split; no one earns majority; House picks Adams as president

Jackson’s Opponents in 1824

Henry Clay [KY]

John Quincy Adams [MA]

John C. Calhoun [SC]

William H. Crawford [GA]

Election of 1824 New England Candidate John Quincy Adams • Son of 2nd President • Extensive history in govt.

– Worked as secretary to American delegation in Europe at age of 14. – Elected to Senate in 1802. – Broke w/ his father to become a Jeffersonian. – Served as a negotiator to end the War of 1812. – Secretary of State to President Monroe. • This had become the pathway to the Presidency.

Election of 1824 Southern Candidates • William Crawford- Georgia – Served as Sec. of Treasury under Presidents Madison and Monroe. – Fiscal conservative/Jeffersonian on spending.

• John C. Calhoun- S. Carolina – Sec. of War – Not yet the bitter Southern sectionalist and slavery apologist he will become. – Bitter rival of Crawford because the Sec. of Treasury had cut his budget.

Election of 1824 Western Candidates • Henry Clay- Kentucky – The “Great Compromiser” – American System: internal improvements, protective tariffs, strengthen the ‘bonds of union’

• Andrew Jackson- Tennessee – “Hero of New Orleans” – Controversy regarding his actions in Spanish Florida – Jeffersonian strict constructionist; antidebt; low taxes and spending.

Results of the 1824 Election

Election of 1824

Jackson did much better than the political “pros” expected • Won Penn., NJ, NC, Ill., Ind., and all of the “new states” of the southwest. – All of these wins, except NJ, were ‘landslides’

• Finished a strong second in several states he did not win. • Outside of New England, Jackson the clear choice of a large majority. But Jackson did not have the majority needed for an electoral college victory.

The Election of 1824:

Popular Vote

Electoral Vote

Andrew Jackson

43%

99*

J.Q. Adams

31%

32

William Crawford

13%

41

Henry Clay

13%

37

Candidate

*A plurality, but not the majority required by the Constitution.

Election of 1824 When no electoral college majority exists, matter decided in the House. • Top 3 contend. – #4 Clay is out. But… • He’s the Speaker of the House“King Maker.”

– Clay dislikes Adams. – Crawford has suffered a massive stroke. – Hates Jackson- ‘military chieftain’, ‘backwoods Napoleon’

Election of 1824

The “Corrupt Bargain” (?)

• What choice did Clay really have? He felt his only option was to support Adams. • Met w/ Adams on January 9, 1825. – Did they make a deal?

• Clay had already made his position known to close associates in December of 1824weeks before his meeting with Adams. • Clay maneuvered states that had supported him in the election to throw their support to Adams- even though Jackson was the clear 2nd choice in these states.

Election of 1824

The “Corrupt Bargain” (?) • Jackson and his supporters cry “Foul!” • A pro-Jackson newspaper speculated (lied?) in late December that a deal between Adams and Clay had been struck for Clay to support Adams in return for the Sec. of State position. Clay denies this. • But, after the election, the position was offered and Clay accepted. – Terrible mistake by Adams and Clay.

• Jackson and supporters believe the election was stolen. They will stew and plot their electoral revenge for 1828.

Election of 1828

• Jackson aggressively seeks what he believes was stolen from him 4 years earlier. – Keeps w/ etiquette of not campaigning himself, but works actively behind the scenes.

• “Jackson and Reform” the theme – No more aristocratic domination • Supports amendment to prevent members of Congress from taking executive position for 2 yrs.

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Jeffersonianism Moderate on tariffs Skeptical of ‘internal improvements’ Indian removal

Election of 1828

A modern style campaign • Central campaign committee- based at ‘The Hermitage’- Jackson’s home. • State committees- sent intelligence to central comm., and received information for distribution/publication. • Local committees- organized events (parades, rallies, etc.). Whip up enthusiasm. – Often called “Hickory Clubs”

• Fundraising- national and local levelsincluded ‘$5 a plate public banquets’ and other ticketed events.

Election of 1828

A very nasty campaign • Jackson campaign: Claimed Adams – A ‘secret aristocrat’ – Had taken an innocent American girl to give to the Russian tsar as a mistress – Had stolen the office in 1824- Corrupt Bargain.

• Adams campaign: Claimed Jackson – Was a ‘frontier lowlife’, lawless – Had acted like a Napoleon as a military leader. – Had a bigamist for a wife

Rachel Jackson

Final Divorce Decree

Election of 1828 • Balloting begins in September. Varied laws in states draw process out. • Adams, as expected, wins New Eng. • Jackson wins everywhere else. – 68% of the electoral vote – 56% of the popular vote

Voter Turnout 1824 v. 1828

1828 Election Results

Why Jackson Wins: The Center of the US population moves West.

Why Jackson Wins: Jackson’s Faith in the “Common Man” 

Intense distrust of Eastern “establishment,” monopolies, & special privilege.

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His heart & soul was with the “plain folk.”

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Belief that the common man was capable of uncommon achievements.

Why Jackson Wins: The New “Jackson Coalition”  The Planter Elite in the South 

People on the Frontier

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State Politicians – spoils system

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Immigrants in the cities.

Election of 1828 • Victory turns to sadness – In December of 1828, Rachel Jackson dies after suffering 5 days of violent heart seizures. – Jackson blames the scandalous attacks on Rachel during the campaign. •Never forgives his political enemies.

Jackson in Mourning for His Wife

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Jackson: “President of the common man”

Jackson not the democratic philosopher Jefferson was.

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His theory simple: equal protection and equal benefits to white citizens. No class favoritism.

Spoils System:

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To the victor goes the spoils. Winner removes supporters of opponents and replaces with their supporters. Jackson actually only removed no more than 1/5th of office holders. But his embrace of spoils system set precedent for future.

The Reign of “King Mob”

Andrew Jackson as President

The “Peggy Eaton Affair”

Nullification crisis

 Jackson believed in reducing federal govt., but also in protecting power of presidency and preserving the union. So while trying to reduce economic role of fed govt., was also willing to assert supremacy of union.  Tariff question- South Carolina blamed tariffs for their economic problems.

Nullification crisis

John C. Calhoun- VP under Jackson, but a leader of SC nullification. Drew upon the VA and KY resolves that were response to the Alien and Sedition acts. Nullification argument

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Fed govt. a creation of the states, which means states are the final arbiters of constitutionality of federal laws. If a state concluded that Congress had passed an unconstitutional law, then it could hold a special convention and declare the federal law null and void within the state.

Nullification crisis

1832, SC nullifies tariffs of 1828 and 1832.

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Jackson argues that nullification is treason.

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Forbade collection of duties within the state.

Proposes and Congress passes a force bill- president authorized to use military force to see that acts of Congress are obeyed.

No other states join Calhoun and SC in protest. Leaves SC isolated.

Nullification crisis

 Henry Clay- compromise. – Tariff gradually lowered so by 1842 it would be at 1816 levels. – Compromise and tariff bill passed on same day. – SC in final hurrah- nullifies force bill.

The Webster-Hayne Debate

Sen. Daniel Webster [MA]

Sen. Robert Hayne [SC]

1830 Webster: Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable. Jackson: Our Federal Union—it must be preserved. Calhoun: The Union, next to our liberty, most dear.

Indian Removal 

Jackson’s Goal?

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1830  Indian Removal Act

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Cherokee Nation v. GA (1831) “domestic dependent nation”

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Jackson: “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it!”

Indian removal

Jackson’s attitude towards natives always negative. Not too different from most Americans.

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18th C. attitude: Noble savages. Possible to civilize. Inherent dignity. 19th C. attitude: Just savages. Not possible to civilize. Whites should not be expected to live near savages. • Whites wanted land of natives. • Whites feared contact would bring violence. • Whites angry that some tribes harbored escaped slaves. • Independent natives a challenge to white supremacy.

Indian removal

Most problematic in 1830s were tribes in South.

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“5 civilized tribes”: Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Chickasaw, Choctaw. Fed govt. the Constitutional authority to deal with natives, not states. But states (GA, AL, Miss.) grew impatient. •

To allow Native sovereignty may have been a violation of Art. IV, Sec. 3 of Const.: “no new State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state…”

Indian removal

Congress passed removal act in 1830.

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Jackson referred to this removal as “voluntary”, but it was not. -

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He made clear that the federal govt. would no longer protect natives from the states.

appropriated money to finance fed negotiations to relocate the tribes. • •

Not enough money. It cost more that $5M to expel just the Choctawswhich was $2M more than Jackson said required for all natives. –

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Even this wasn’t enough.

The vote on the Removal Act was very sectional: Slave states 61-15 in favor; Free states 82-41 opposed. •

W/o the 3/5 compromise, the bill would not have passed.

Indian removal •

Cherokee appealed GA activities to Sup. Ct. Won. • Jackson disregarded the decision. • “John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it.”

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1835 fed govt. made a treaty with a minority faction of Cherokee. Great majority of Cherokee did not recognize treaty as legitimate. Jackson sent troops to force them out. –

Army of 7000 under Winfield Scott.

Indian removal

 Trail of Tears

– Thousands died. Perhaps 1/8th. – Moved to Indian Territory (OK). • Fed govt. thought this was far enough. • Didn’t think whites would come into contact with them across the Mississippi River. • Thought OK was undesirable land and on the eastern edge of the Great American Desert.

The Cherokee Nation 1820

Indian Removal

Trail of Tears (1838-1839)

Jackson’s Professed “Love” for Native Americans

Jackson’s Use of Federal Power VETO 1830  Maysville Road project in KY [state of his political rival, Henry Clay]

Opposition to the 2nd B.U.S. “Soft” (paper) $ 

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state bankers felt it restrained their banks from issuing bank notes freely. supported rapid economic growth & speculation.

“Hard” (specie) $ 

felt that coin was the only safe currency.

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didn’t like any bank that issued bank notes.

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suspicious of expansion & speculation.

The “Monster” Is Destroyed! 

“Pet Banks”?

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1832  Jackson vetoed the extension of the 2nd National Bank of the United States.

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1836  the charter expired.

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1841  the bank went bankrupt!

Jackson v. the Bank 

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Jackson was for union and the presidency, but consistently against concentrating power in the hands of the fed govt or the “aristocrats” he believed had controlled it. Vetoed congressional measure to build Maysville Rd. in KY. Unconstitutional in his view, and unwise because it would commit US financially to the matter.

Jackson v. the Bank

 National Bank

– Place where fed govt deposited its money. – Govt owned 1/5th of the BUS – BUS did a lot of business• Making loans • Issued bank notes which was a dependable means of currency. • It’s capital was more than 2x the total annual expenditure of US govt. • By controlling credit, it could effectively control US economy.

Jackson v. the Bank  Jackson wanted to destroy the bank – He was a hard money mandid not like paper currency and credit speculation. – He believed- on Jeffersonian grounds- that BUS was unconstitutional. – Made it clear he would not support recharter of the bank in 1836.

Jackson v. the Bank  BUS run by Nicholas Biddle – Philadelphia aristocrat – Gave financial favors to people in effort to save the BUS. • Lots of loans to Daniel Webster. Webster also named a counsel and director of the Boston branch. – Conflict of interest

• Confirms Jackson’s suspicions about elite.

The National Bank Debate

Nicholas Biddle

President Jackson

Jackson v. the Bank  Clay, Webster, and others provoked a controversy for the presidential election of 1832. Convinced Biddle to seek recharter 4 years early. – Jackson predictably vetoed. – Clay hoped the veto controversy would propel him into the White House. Failed.

Jackson v. the Bank  Jackson decided to kill the bank by taking fed deposits out. Jackson so determined, he fired two Treasury Secretaries who refused to do this because it would destabilize the economy. The third, Roger Taney (Dred Scott) did it.

1832 Election Results

Jackson v. the Bank

• Biddle called in loans and raise interest rates, citing lack of resources. This further destabilized the economy. • Bitter conflict between the two men. Personal duel. • US economy struggled in 1833-4. Pro-BUS people blamed Jackson. Pro-Jackson people blamed Biddle. • Biddle eventually backed down. Bank died in 1836.

The Specie Circular (1936)  “wildcat banks.”  buy future federal

land only with gold or silver.  Jackson’s goal?

Results of the Specie Circular  Banknotes loose their value.  Land sales plummeted.  Credit not available.  Businesses began to fail.  Unemployment rose.

The Panic of 1837!

The Panic of 1837 Spreads Quickly!

The Downfall of “Mother Bank”

An 1832 Cartoon: “King Andrew”

The 1836 Election Results

Martin Van Buren “Old Kinderhook” [O. K.]

Andrew Jackson in Retirement

Photo of Andrew Jackson in 1844

(one year before his death)

1767 - 1845