Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

This essay is about President Andrew Jackson discussing whether he was a good or a bad president.

Satisfactory Essays
359 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
This essay is about President Andrew Jackson discussing whether he was a good or a bad president.
Andrew Jackson, our seventh President of the United States, is in rather an ok President. Considered as the "People's President" he was very straight forward and honest to "his people". He takes his job seriously and possibly the most liberal president in history. His presidency however was neither bad nor good, but shared a fair amount of each.

First off, the good qualities he had was the fact he had bold commitment to enforce laws and fight back against secession threats from South. Two high tariffs were passed during 1828 and 1833 which increased taxes on imported foreign goods. The south was outraged by the high taxation so under the Nullification act that allows states to nullify laws they don't like. Soon after the second tariff was issued, they formed a convention to build up an army with the idea of secession. Jackson was so enraged that he was willing to use all the power he has to stop it. Fortunately he was able to make a deal with the Vice President John C. Calhoun, who was in favor of the south, to lower the tax prices. The south backed off from secession and things settled down.

Secondly, the bad if not malicious duties Jackson did during his presidency was the force removal of Native Americans from Georgia to the west and the ending the National Bank system. The state of Georgia was against the Supreme Court who was against the removal of the Natives. Even though the Supreme Court won, Georgia as well as Jackson ignored it and forced the Natives out of Georgia to the present state of Oklahoma. Many died before they even got there. As to the National Bank issue, Jackson believed that it was a monopoly towards the upper class people and as a result refuse to recharter it. Jackson used one of his vetoes, and the Bank's congressional supporters did not have enough votes to override him. The Bank ceased to exist when its charter expired in 1836, but even before that Jackson had weakened it considerably by withdrawing millions of dollars of federal funds. This later resulted in contributing to the Panic of 1837.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Jackson had many similar views of the constitution as Thomas Jefferson when he became president. None of this was more apparent than with his feud with Nicholas Biddle and the national bank. He believed that there shouldn't be a national bank only state banks, or as his opponents called them “pet banks”. He said that the bank wasn't in the constitution itself and therefor would veto the recharter of the bank in 1832. He then withdrew all of the government deposits from the 2nd national bank and deposited them into the state banks. Although the national bank wasn't in the constitution, his opponents believe that his personal hatred toward the bank drove his reasoning, not the constitutionality of the bank itself.…

    • 767 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Chapter 7 Notes

    • 1742 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Andrew Jackson was the 7th president of the United States. Jackson was a fierce man and good General. Jackson was the hero at the Battle of New Orleans, surprisingly defeating the powerful British Navy. Jackson’s aggressive character got him into trouble for raiding the Seminoles in Florida.…

    • 1742 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    A president, in the eye of Andrew Jackson, was the "representative" of the people. Not only that, his presidency was said to be that of the "common man," because his beliefs reflected those of the common man. He was the first American president to be born on the frontier, and as he declared, he governed on behalf of "the humble members of society- the farmers, mechanics, and laborers" (Tindall/Shi P.332). The presidential office he entered in 1829 would not be left the same after he left in 1837. Jackson's personal attitude and conflicts influenced the outcomes of his policies and actions, and as a whole strengthened the presidential office at the expense of congress. This can be shown through issues such as internal improvements, the tariff, and his demise of the National Bank.…

    • 1250 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    tAndrew Jackson was the seventh president of the United States and during his presidency he did things that were considered morally and traditionally out of bounds. Many of these things have had a lasting impact on the presidency and the rest of the executive branch to this day. Some examples of those things were new reasons for the use of the power of veto, his attitude towards executive branch office holders who disagreed with him, and his overall strong actions while in office. These three examples are the main reasons why Jackson is considered not to have overstepped his limits but expanded them, and not abused but enhanced presidential power.…

    • 670 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Andrew Jackson was the 7th president of the United States, and was in office from March 4, 1829 to March 4, 1827. Many would argue if jackson was a man of good deed or just an evil president. However, Jackson cast many negative outcomes while in office, therefore showing that he was not a man of good deed but was a cynical president.…

    • 535 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although President Jackson was a champion of democracy and egalitarianism, there are some instances where he takes advantage of his presidential powers and uses him for his own benefits and beliefs and not for the good of the country. President Jackson did a lot of good for the early Democratic Party though. He helped expand voting and focused on destroying monopolies like the national bank that he believed were harming the nation. He did however take manners into his own hands at times. For instance disregarding Supreme Court rulings. Enacting Military action on a state and Vetoing bills like the Maysville road that would’ve helped the union, but since he didn’t approve he vetoed it.…

    • 660 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Jon Doe

    • 848 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Andrew Jackson became the nation’s seventh president in 1829. He made significant changes in American politics at that time. He was very popular with the people because of the fact that he was a hero of the War of 1812. He had also served in the senate and was a tough man who had manifested the spirit of the frontier. One change Jackson brought about was the steadily increasing power of the west. He happened to be the first president to come from the west of the Appalachians and was also the start of a new era of democracy in American politics. President Jackson did not approve of a overpowering or controlling federal government. He felt the national government should be the least involved as possible as he vetoed many acts of congress in his term as president. He believed that the state should build the road and not the national government. Jackson’s idea of a limited government shared the beliefs of many Americans who feared the power of the federal government. Although many crisis did occur during Jackson's term as President like the Nullification Crisis, Indian Removal Act and the Bank War, Jackson was always a supporter of a limited federal government.…

    • 848 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jackson broke, with the Indian Removal Act, the federal treaty that was made with the Cherokee that granted them land in Georgia forever. (Document H) A democratic leader would not have gone ahead with breaking this treaty made with the Cherokee for their own personal values. Even though leading nearly 1/3 of the Native American population to their deaths was not necessarily considered an immoral thing to do at this time, Jackson did not follow the democratic principles of dealing with this issue. When election time comes around and Jackson prepares to run for a second term he is forced into a bind. Henry Clay, who will run for president in 1832, supports the National Bank which Jackson had criticized in the past. Although Jackson did criticize the bank, he knew that, with all its flaws, its policies did work. He then made a political decision to veto the re-chartering of the National Bank putting the U.S. economy at risk. (Document G) Although he backs up his decision with valid issues that the bank possessed, he put his own career ahead of the national interest and as a result the economy would…

    • 904 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Andrew Jackson was, and still is a beloved president to many people. The common person might look at our seventh president as a true war hero, when in fact Andrew Jackson was like a tyrant in many ways. He was the reason for about 7,000 Cherokees deaths, and violated many laws. The only reason Andrew Jackson was not impeached was because the senate did not provide a two thirds vote.…

    • 647 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During Jackson’s presidency many would say that he was a hero while others would speak of him as a villain; it all depends on the point of view one perceives it. If someone was a farmer or a common man, they most likely would say he was a hero, but if an individual was a Native American or from South Carolina they would probably refer to him as a villain. Andrew Jackson was born poor in the border of North and South Carolina and raised by a single mother, which was very rear during this time. He could made people do what he wanted; if he wanted South Carolina to pay tariffs he would force them to pay. This will make South Carolinians very upset. Jackson also imposed some laws against Native Americans but that also favored farmers and their families.…

    • 678 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    His main problem was with the Bank of the United States and their way of acting as though part of the government. He thought it wrong for a single bank to hold majority of the country’s gold and have a stable hold on their paper money. Therefore his passion for revenge came into play; the original charter was to expire in 1836 and needed a renewal to continue on. You can bet what Jackson decided to do. After gliding through Congress he gave the bank a big old veto, causing them to fold in 1836. Not only did he hate what he deemed a “moneyed monster” (American Pageant 268), he wanted to bury it forever by taking out all the federal funds from the vaults of this bank -- effectively bleeding them dry. Andrew Jackson’s spite is disgusting. He was willing to put the country in a massive financial panic just to prove his point and his power. Again, in no situation should this man have been put in charge with his impulsiveness being so obvious. Jackson left the country in shambles when he retired just for a revenge plot -- no matter how justified he thought he was, that is not acceptable behavior for a leader of a…

    • 929 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jackson also supported the ban of anti-slavery pamphlets in the mail because he was a slave owner as well. During Andrew Jackson's term of presidency, he confronted some of the issues that defined a nascent nation still searching for its identity. The removal of all the Native Americans off their home land, the rise of the corporations, and slavery. A great president is someone who is a very strong and confident leader. Someone who can make choices that will change the country for the better, and does what is best for the good of all the people. Some people might just consider Andrew Jackson to be a very good president because he did things such as revolutionizing presidential campaigning, which also made him the very first modern president, and using his presidential powers to veto some of the bills that he thought could be unfit or harmful. Some others would argue that The former president Andrew Jackson was an evil president because he did things like enforce the Indian Removal Act and abided the power to veto in an effort to take more control over and intimidate congress. Speaking of the Indian Removal Act, it is the one thing Andrew Jackson did that most people totally and completely disagree with. Andrew Jackson instated the Indian Removal Act in 1830. This act evicted thousands and thousands of Native American families, specifically Cherokees, from their homes in Georgia and the Carolinas so the white…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Throughout the second term of Jackson, the national bank was being accused of having too much power. Jackson believed the bank was being unjust with its power. Jackson’s decisions not only concerning the bank but also in economics had great impact to the United States.…

    • 183 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jackson was so likable amongst the American people that he was nicknamed, “the people’s president”. Jackson had multiple nicknames as president. Names such as Old Hickory, King Andrew, and the “people's president”. He was named the people's president for things that he did that people liked him for. One of the most significant things he's done was to create the spoils system as referenced from the website Duksters.com. (http://www.ducksters.com/biography/uspresidents/andrewjackson.php)Jackson was liked as a President, respected as a war hero and seemed to rise above his upbringing. He definitely was well liked for good reasons.Jackson has so many good qualities that I believe he should remain on the…

    • 567 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The validity of President Andrew Jackson's response to the Bank War issue has been contradicted by many, but his reasoning was supported by fact and inevitably beneficial to the country. Jackson's primary involvement with the Second Bank of the United States arose during the suggested governmental re-chartering of the institution. It was during this period that the necessity and value of the Bank's services were questioned.…

    • 2410 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays