Frontiersman or Front Man

Election of 1824 Marked an end to the “Era of Good Feelings” Also an end to the “Virginia Dynasty” Jefferson, Madison, Monroe.

The Candidates John Quincy Adams (Secretary of State) William H. Crawford (Secretary of Treasury) Andrew Jackson Henry Clay All democratic-republicans Each with different personalities and governmental beliefs

Results Jackson 99 E.C. 152,933 Popular votes Adams 84 E.C. 115, 696 Popular votes Crawford 41 E.C. 46, 979 Popular votes Clay 37 E.C. 47, 136 Popular votes Jackson did not have majority of E.C. (Effect of Clay) Vote goes to the House of Representatives Clay, coming in 4 th, is out of the race

“Corrupt Bargain” Clay uses his dislike of Jackson to sway support to Adams Adams becomes president and appoints Clay to Secretary of State. Jackson supporters denounce as a corrupt system of elite interests without listening to the will of the people Adams presidency marked by legislative opposition

I’d rather be right than be president”

Election of 1828 Easily won by Jackson over Adams More active interest in politics emerged State organizations based on political participation Mass campaigning encouraged participation Party loyalty among politicians and public Jackson wins with coalition of the North, South and West

“Age of the Common Man” Jackson was a symbol of the possibilities of personal advancement that frontier offered Strong executive who largely ignored his cabinet “Kitchen Cabinet”: Nickname given by political opponents of Jackson to his personal friends who were the unofficial cabinet

Jacksonian Democracy Strengthens presidency by using veto more often than all other presidents combined Overrode sectional interests which made him very popular: In contrast to a time where Congress was dominated by popular sectional figures: Clay, Calhoun, Webster: All rivals of Jackson

Spoils System AKA Patronage System or Rotation in office Practice of giving government jobs to friends as opposed to having any sense of merit Jackson removed around 919 positions upon assuming office Explained as reform or constructive turnover Performance in public office, Jackson maintained, required no special intelligence or training Would protect against corrupt civil servants

Tariff of Abominations 1828 As the North industrialized, the industries wanted protection from foreign competition Southerners were outvoted by the North and West and tariffs were passed South argued that the tariff was of sectional interest and only helped some while harming others Claimed to be unconstitutional due to violation of states rights

Cont John Calhoun of South Carolina writes a defense to doctrine of nullification: States could refuse to enforce laws deemed to be unconstitutional South Carolina nullifies a 1833 tariff and threatens to secede. Jackson considers the act treason, obtains bill from Congress which allows him to collect tax by force if necessary

Cont Henry Clay designs a compromise tariff that ends threat of secession and civil war Reduced tariffs to 1816 levels

Veto of Maysville Road Bill 1830 Congress votes to allocate funds for construction of a road near Maysville, Ky Jackson vetoed claiming the funds were unconstitutional and funding should come from state funds Loss for Henry Clay and supporters of Jackson in the west

Jackson and Native Americans Policy of U.S. government towards Nat-Ams had been to allow them to stay east of the Mississippi River: As long as they attempted to adopt or assimilate white ways TJ offered the alternative of removal to Indian Territory west of the Mississippi River

Five Civilized Tribes Cherokees, Chickasaws, Choctaws, Creeks, and Seminoles Cherokees had adopted many white customs Constitution based on the U.S. Schools for children

Sequoyah Developed the Cherokee writing system

Indian Removal Act 1830 Appropriated funds for removal, by force if necessary Some tribes negotiated treaties to leave Cherokees decided to use the court system Cherokee Nation v Georgia (1831) Worchester v Georgia (1832) Marshall ruled in favor of the Cherokee Jackson ignores and continues with policy “John Marshall made his decision, now let him enforce it”

Trail of Tears Cherokees, last of the 5 Civilized Tribes to move Forcibly moved by the U.S. Army to present day Oklahoma Around 4,000 out of 15,000 died

Jackson’s Bank War 2 nd Bank of the U.S. chartered 1816 Functioned as a quasi-private institution Held government money Sold government bonds Made commercial loans Most important function: Control over state banks which tended to issue more paper money than they could back in hard currency Overall, the Bank acted as a stabilizer by controlling money supply

Cont. Western farmers and speculators disliked the Bank Panic of 1819 caused in part by the Bank by cutting back on available credit Clay and Webster began an early push for a rechartering of the 2 nd Bank Congress approved the application Jackson quickly vetoed the Bank bill: Unconstitutional Harmful to states rights

Election of 1832 and Bank War Jackson easily defeats Henry Clay who was portrayed as the defender of the Bank and privilege Jackson withdraws all federal deposits ($10 million) Places the money in state banks called “pet banks” by critics Jackson’s response was that his election gave him authority to act against the Bank Other than impeachment, not much Congress could do

Nicholas Biddle President of the National Bank Enemy of Andrew Jackson

More Bank Backlash Effects Marked the end of Clay’s American System Beginning of laissez-faire economic policy Formation of permanent opposition political party: (American two-party system): Whigs, which was a reference to the patriots who challenged King George Refer to Jackson as “King Andrew” Believed he was acting more like a tyrant than a president

Response of Nicholas Biddle As federal funds are withdrawn, Biddle calls in Bank’s commercial loans Caused recession and panic Merchants, businessman, southern planters outraged at Jackson

Specie Circular & Panic of 1837 Widespread use of paper money issued by state banks alarms Jackson Issues the “Specie Circular” that required all purchases of public lands be made in hard currency Banks suspended business Led to the collapse of banking system which led to worst recession to date Federal government provided no assistance during this time (no bailouts, etc)

Election of 1836 Whigs attempt to run 4 sectional candidates as strategy to draw Electoral College votes away from VP Martin Van Buren Would take the election to the House of Reps Strategy fails Van Buren becomes known as “Van Ruin” Inherited all problems Jackson left behind 4 dismal years in the White House

Election of 1840 Whigs run William Henry Harrison “Tippecanoe and Tyler Too” Easily defeats Van Buren Harrison dies a month after taking office John Tyler becomes first president to assume office upon death of the president Nicknamed “His Accidency” Turned out to be anti-Whig and anti-Jackson Vetoed bills related to American System

William Henry HarrisonJohn Tyler