President Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republican Congress Quite Unhappy

President Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republican Congress During Reconstruction, President Andrew Johnson and the Republican Congress did not get along. Congress had enough votes to override a Presidential veto, but the President could refuse to enforce the laws.

President Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republican Congress The Congress decided to pass two new laws: – The Command of Army Act: Required all orders from the President to go through the General of the Army. – The Tenure of Office Act: Required Senate approval to remove any official that had the Senate’s approval.

President Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republican Congress Johnson challenged the law by firing Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton. 3 days later, the Senate voted to impeach Johnson. The vote, however, came up one vote short of the 2/3 necessary to impeach the President.

President Andrew Johnson and the Radical Republican Congress Although Johnson finished his term in office, he did not run for reelection in 1868.

End of Reconstruction Southern Resistance – KKK End of Reconstruction/”New South” – South remained most agricultural 6% of jobs were manufacturing in 1900 – Alliance between Northern financers and powerful white Southerners – Iron and steel industries grew – African Americans stuck in lower class Sharecroppers Usually accumulated with huge debt. – Failure to pay off debt could lead to imprisonment or forced labor.

Should this statue exist? Nathan Bedford Statue – Memphis, TN Confederate General First Grand Wizard of the KKK

Reconstruction By 1870 all the Southern states had rejoined the Union. Leaders of the Confederacy were mostly barred from politics, and the South was divided up into 5 military districts. Many Northerners moved South to take advantage of the situation.

Reconstruction These Northerners were mockingly called “carpetbaggers” by people from the South. They were mostly despised as they were viewed as trying to take advantage of the Southerners.

Reconstruction Early on in Reconstruction “black codes” were formed to limit the rights of African Americans and keep them in a condition similar to slavery. After Republicans had militarily and politically taken over the South during Reconstruction, these “black codes” were overruled.

Reconstruction Roads, bridges, and railroads were all rebuilt under Republican rule. Because of the newly found freedoms, many African Americans attended school and participated in politics. Some even were elected to Congress.

Reconstruction However, not all was well and peaceful in the South. Many white Southerners opposed Reconstruction and formed secret societies to undermine it. The largest and most famous of these groups was the Ku Klux Klan.

Reconstruction The KKK was formed by former Confederate soldiers in Pulaski, TN. They wore hooded white robes and rode in bands at night terrorizing African Americans, white Republicans, carpetbaggers, teachers in African American schools, and anyone else who supported the Republican government.

Reconstruction During the years of 1868 to 1876, Ulysses S. Grant was President. During his presidency, scandals and a deep economic depression hurt the Republican party politically. Because of this many Democrats were elected back to Congress.

Reconstruction Democrats began to win back power in the South through a number of means, not all of them being legal. In 1877, the Presidential election results were up for dispute. To make sure that a Republican stayed in the Whitehouse, Republicans and Democrats made a compromise.

Reconstruction This compromise was called the “Compromise of 1877.” The deal was that Republicans would pull troops out of the South if Rutherford B. Hayes was elected President. This may have been true, however, Reconstruction was winding to an end at the time the compromise would have happened.

Reconstruction As a result of the end of Reconstruction, due to Northern influence, many Southern states began to industrialize. Even still, by 1900, only 6% of Southern workers worked in manufacturing.

Reconstruction The end of Reconstruction hit African Americans in the South the hardest. Many had to return o plantations owned by whites where they either worked for wages or became tenant farmers. Most tenant famers eventually became sharecroppers.

Reconstruction Many sharecroppers struggled to meet the quota imposed on them. Because of this, many went into debt and either were trapped on the land they worked or were imprisoned. While the Civil War had ended slavery, the end of Reconstruction had led to many African American being trapped in extreme poverty.