Analyze the extent to which TWO of the following influenced the development of democracy between 1820 and 1840: Jacksonian economic policy, Changes in electoral politics, Second Great Awakening, Westward movement.…
In regards to the Jacksonian Democrats guarding the United States Constitution, they had pretty much followed it to a strict interpretation. For example, the Maysville Road Bill in 1830. Jackson had opposed to concentrating power in the federal government or of aristocratic institutions. He had argued that the bill was unconstitutional and because the road had lain within the state of Kentucky, and not, therefore, a part of interstate commerce. Jackson had favored states’ rights and believed that the federal government should not interfere or over step the boundaries of state affairs. However, Jackson was sometimes not always consistent in his strict guardianship of the Constitution. One reason was the Tariff of 1828, also known as the tariff abominations. Angry over the win of John Quincy Adams election in 1824, quite a few of Jackson supporters wanted to embarrass Adams and his administration. The tariff would be for items like manufactured goods. Jacksonians had hoped to get people to think that Adams favored the New England territory over the rest of the nation. Little did Jackson know that in the election of 1828, he did not need to try and…
Jackson did guard the Constitution quite extensively, much to the dismay of Henry Clay. One…
There is no doubt that the Jacksonian Democrats changed American history. Their brand of fiery populism increased political participation throughout the nation, with millions of white men voting by the 1840 presidential election, as seen in Grolier’s Presidential Election Results. However as the King Andrew the First cartoon shows, Jacksonian Democrats were in reality, tyrannical opportunists who made decisions based on dogma and populism, ignored the Courts, and curtailed minority rights, ultimately weakening the Constitution.…
It can be seen by his actions against John C. Calhoun’s nullification theory. The theory gave states the authority to nullify any federal ruling they found unjust. But Jackson did not pander to the theory, and when South Carolina attempted to nullify the tariffs of abominations in 1832, Jackson compared their actions to treason, and demanded federal military intervention to secure the rulings of the federal government (Brinkley 243). Further showing his political side, Jackson wanted all Native Americans to be forced west of the Mississippi River, a sentiment carrying over from his time as a military leader against the tribes (Brinkley 244). Jackson forced the Indians to move west along what later became known as the Trail of Tears, and perpetuated the notion that he was doing them a “favor” by providing them land in the west and keeping them separate from the white race (Brinkley 245). Jackson helped maintain his strength of power, and those beneath him, with the Spoils System. Under this system, Jackson argued that elected officials could appoint subordinates, rather than have them be elected (Brinkley 240). This system further lamented Jackson’s ability to control his government, and further the goals of the like-minded individuals beneath…
American suffrage has been expanded at different times during history. In colonial times, suffrage was limited to males and then typically only to men, who were major landowners and tax payers. The effort to expand suffrage during the “ Age of Jackson” was a fierce struggle between those who favored it and those who opposed what they saw as a dangerous expansion of democracy. As years and centuries passed, arguments were revealed in a debate over expanding suffrage during the “Age of Jackson”.…
Elected in 1828, Andrew Jackson remained popular with the general public. Jackson asserted that the fundamentals of democracy lay in absolute acceptance of the majority – the common man. Jackson persuaded countless Americans by stressing Jackson’s life story as a man from modest origins to becoming a successful planter. He is associated with the movement of increased popular participation in government, nearly doubling voter turnout during his second election. Jackson, the man who accentuated the spoils system, expanded Suffrage, and emphasized Laissez-faire Economics is indubitably not only the “Champion of the Common Man” but also the modern foundation of democracy.…
In American history, political parties have often taken responsibility of preserving the foundation in which America rested upon. The Jacksonian Democrats, during their existence from 1829 to 1841, led a "crusade" where they heavily maintained the principles of the United States Constitution, protected individual liberties, and provided equality of economic opportunity. Jacksonian Democracy is a type of democracy that the people should be governed as little as possible and that whatever governing that is taking place, should be done directly by the people for the people.…
Even though Sellers focused largely on the debate over Jacksonian Democracy, there was no mention in regards to equality and slavery. Luckily, Kenneth Vickery’s “Herrenvolk Democracy and Egalitarianism in South Africa and the U.S. South” provided more insight. According to his thesis, Vickery said that during the Jacksonian era, “where there was progress towards democracy or equality for whites, there was frequently a diminution or limitation of the rights and opportunities of non-whites”. His argument was that when it came to failure and survival, whites relied on racial prejudices to further their own upward mobility. As mentioned in Seller’s work, in the early 1800s, politics was controlled by the egalitarians and local legislatures were…
Andrew Jackson stated that, “The union was formed for the benefit of all...Everyone must see that the other States, in self-defense, must oppose secession at all costs”. The nullifiers stated that if the federal government tried to use its strength against South Carolina, then the state would form its own independent government and retreat from the union. Jackson opposed nullification, and believed it would end the United States as a nation. Andrew Jackson does not want to ignore the sacrifices made to form the…
Andrew Jackson is one of those people where most people recognize his name as the hero of New Orleans. “He became a national war hero after defeating the British in New Orleans during the War of 1812 “(“Andrew Jackson”). However, many people don’t know that he was the one who found the Democratic Party. Thirteen polls of historians and political scientists taken between 1948 and 2009. All have ranked Jackson always in or near the top ten presidents, among the greatest of all.…
Andrew Jackson and his supporters have been criticized for upholding the principles of majority rule and the supremacy of the federal government inconsistently and unfairly. The validity of this statement varies in the cases of the re-charter of the Bank, the nullification controversy, and the removal of the Native Americans.…
Jackson’s Democratic Party was created with views that favored ‘the people’ rather than the wealthy and elite. Jackson opposed the National Bank since it benefited the wealthy instead of the people. The Jacksonian era helped the suffrage expansion to where all white men can vote rather than just white men who own land. This expansion was one of Jackson’s primary characteristics. Another great idea started in the Jacksonian period was the Spoils System where Jackson rewarded loyal supporters of his party with government jobs. The Jacksonian period had many great features that helped shape the politics of our modern…
Jacksonian Democracy For quite some time Americans have been led to believe that during the 1820s and 30s, Jacksonian Democrats were the guardians of the people, and worked to improve the nation for the people. The truth remains, however, that during this period, President Jackson vetoed a bill to recharter the Bank of the United States of America, infringed on the rights of Native Americans, used "brute" force to bring Southerners under submission during the Tariff of 1832. He enacted the Spoils System which did not guarantee the best leadership, and was morally corrupt.…
The Jacksonian Democrats claimed they were guardians of the Constitution. Their strict interpretation led them against a national bank and towards power of individual states; however the national bank had already been proven constitutional in McCulloch v. Maryland. Jackson vetoed the Bank of the U.S. failing to guard the Constitution (Doc. B). Jackson also failed to guard the Constitution by not realizing the state’s rights were encroaching and threatening to the national government (Doc. C). Jackson went against the Constitution once again when he violated the 1st Amendment by having the U.S. Post Office conceal abolitionist mail supposed to be delivered to the South (Doc. F). When the Cherokee Indians appealed to the Supreme Court in Worcester v. Georgia, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Indians, but neither Georgia nor Jackson ever enforced or upheld their decision (Doc. G). Jacksonian Democrats did not guard the Constitution.…