Andrew Jackson & Rise of the Common Man

Biography o Born in SC, but lived in Tennessee o 1 st President to live west of the Appalachian o Popular among men who lived in the West and South o War hero from the war of 1812, fought in and won the Battle of New Orleans o Lost in the Election of 1824 because John Quincy Adams won o Jackson won the popular vote but did not have a majority in the House of Representatives o Clay sponsored Adams, so when Adams wins, Adams makes Clay Secretary of State: CORRUPT BARGAIN

CHANGING AMERICAN POLITICS o KEY WORDS: AGE OF THE COMMON MAN & JACKSONIAN DEMOCRACY o Jackson wins in 1828 because the COMMON MAN gets to votes o Emphasis on equality in politics for white men o Expanded Suffrage (voting rights) o Brought together a coalition of “common men” o Factory workers in the Northeast o Farmers (non-slaveholders) in the South o Pioneer farmers in the West o First political campaigns, have slogans and rallies and the press gets involved (led to the death of Jackson’s wife) o Increased voter participation (more people could vote) o Increase in interest groups/division between sections

SPOILS SYSTEM o When Jackson gets elected he challenged the rich (economic) elites by firing them from their government jobs and hiring his friends/campaign supporters o Demonstrates/personifies the democratic spirit and age of the common man o Becomes known as the SPOILS SYSTEM o Kitchen Cabinet- ignores his official cabinet and hires his BFFs

TRAIL OF TEARS o Had most supporters in the South and West o Helped them by removing 60,000 American Indians from the region o Cherokee, Chickasaw, Creek, Choctaw, Seminole o Marched the 16,000 Indians 1,000 miles west into Indian territory o 4,000 Cherokees died during the journey o Known as the “Trail of Tears” o Opened the door for more western settlement and growth of King Cotton

TRAIL OF TEARS

IMPACT ON POLITICAL PARTIES o Federalist Party was gone (Hartford Convention) o Jackson was a Democrat o Whigs and Know Nothings organized to oppose him o Most of their support came from the North, Jackson’s was in the South/West o Division of political parties based on sectionalism o Increase in campaigning o Spoils System

BANK WAR & TARIFFS o Jackson HATED the National Bank o When was this first established? o Since he was from the West he had been negatively affected by the National Bank o Thought the bank was corrupt and gave the federal government too much power o Northerners/Congress supported it o Congress renewed the bank, but Jackson vetoed the bill saying it was unconstitutional o Veto shocked the Whigs because Presidents had rarely used the veto power before. Whigs thought Jackson was a power-hungry tyrant trampling on Congress’s rights

THE CONTRADICTION Railed against class supremacy / believed in white supremacy Insistent on equality of white men / took racism for granted Subjugation of Native American –Indian Removal Act & Trail of Tears Supported Slavery –Jackson determined to keep slavery issue out of national affairs (gag-rule)

President Andrew Jackson used the spoils system to A.attack the Tariff of Abominations B.reward supporters with United States government jobs C.win support for construction of the Erie Canal D.gain passage of the Indian Removal Act President Andrew Jackson represented which newly enfranchised segment of the population? A.Women B.American Indians C.The “Common Man” D.African Americans

The events in this flow chart illustrate which of the following? A.Decreasing voter turnout B.The rise of the common man in American politics C.The decline of American political parties D.Political corruption in elections

HOW HE GOT ELECTED: Jackson portrayed as “a man of the people” First to run a modern campaign –Songs –Slogans –Buttons –Parades –Rallies –Barbecues

WHY: In 1828, everybody came out to vote – Why? –Common man distrusted the Eastern elites! Economics / Politics –Eastern elites ran the economy and the federal government –Common man did not want to be shut out! Secure economic independence Thought John Quincy Adams stole the Election of 1824

Tariffs & Nullification Crisis

Tariffs o Definition: Tax on imports- supported by manufacturers, disliked by farmers o Protected American industry from competition from Europe o Favored by New England and middle states

The Tariff of 1816 o The first tariff in American history passed for protection o About 20 to 25 % o Not high enough to provide protection o It started a protective tariff trend

Tariff of 1824 o Congress increased the tariff significantly, but wool manufacturers wanted more o S.C. leaders didn’t want a higher tariff, they said European wool owners would punish cotton growers by paying a lower price for cotton o Raised the duty from 25% to 33.3% o After this tariff, the price of cotton in Europe fell from 32 cents a pound to 13 cents

Tariff of 1828 o In 1827 manufactures in the North asked for an even higher tariff o There were protests all over S.C. o In 1828 the tariff passed, which raised the duty to 50% o Southerners were shocked at the rates, called it the Tariff of Abominations o Calhoun writes The South Carolina Exposition and Protest secretly because he is still Vice President.

Why were the southerners so angry? o Believed the “Yankee tariff” discriminated against them o Southerners sold their cotton in an unprotected tariff market, but bought manufactured goods in an American market heavily protected by tariffs o The South wanted to protect themselves from the federal government interfering with state’s rights—saw the tariff issue as a way to take a stand

Nullifiers vs. Unionists o Calhoun: (States Rights) States created the Federal government. If a state believed the government had passed an unconstitutional law, then the state could nullify it. The state would not have to obey the law o Webster: (Unionist) The people, not the states, created the Federal government A state could not nullify a law nor secede o How are the above ideas examples of sectionalism?

The Tariff of : Tariff reduced to 35% South was still not satisfied

1832- Ordinance of Nullification In 1832 S.C. “Nullifiers”: had enough votes (2/3rds) to nullify the Tariff of 1832 Nullified with the Ordinance of Nullification Calhoun has resigned and now a senator from SC leading the nullification fight

Jackson’s Response Dec President Jackson responded to the Nullification Proclamation- saying nullification was treason and would use force to collect the tariffs Congress passed the Force Bill, which gave Jackson the power to use the army and navy to enforce laws, specifically the tariffs.

Compromise Tariff of 1833 Created by Calhoun and Henry Clay Attempt to resolve Nullification Crisis Gradually reduce tariff rates for next 10 years until they reached 20% (the 1816 tariff rate) by 1842

South Carolina’s Response S.C. accepts the new tariff War is avoided S.C. repeals the Ordinance of Nullification, and nullifies the Force Bill