Transcript The Rise of Mass Democracy - North Ridgeville City Schools

THE RISE OF MASS
DEMOCRACY
Chapter 13
Introduction



In 1828 an energetic new party, the Democrats,
captured the White House.
By the 1830s the Democrats faced an equally
vigorous opposition party, the Whigs.
This two-party system institutionalized divisions
that had vexed the Revolutionary generation and
came to constitute an important part of the
nation’s checks and balances on political power.
Introduction
New forms of politicking emerged as
candidates used banners, badges,
parades, barbecues, free drinks, and
baby kissing to “get out the vote”.
 Only ¼ of those eligible to vote in 1824
turned out, but that number doubled in
1828 (reaching 78% in 1840)

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
The last of the old style elections was
marked by the controversial corrupt
bargain of 1824.
 Monroe, the last of the Virginia Dynasty,
was completing his second term.

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824

4 Candidates emerged;
John Q. Adams of MA
Henry Clay of KY
William H. Crawford of GA
Andrew Jackson of TN
The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
Jackson, the war hero, had the most
personal appeal, especially in the West,
where he campaigned against
government corruption and privilege.
 Jackson polled more popular votes that
his next two rivals combined, but he did
not win the majority of electoral votes.

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
Because of this deadlock, the House (as
advised by the 12th Amendment) had to choose
among the top 3 candidates.
 Clay was eliminated, but as Speaker of the
House, he had to preside over the very
chamber that had to pick the winner.
 This put Clay in a position to throw the election
to the candidate of his choice.

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824

Clay;
 Thought
Crawford was too old (just had a
stroke and was suffering paralysis)
 Hated Jackson (publicly denounced Jackson’s
conquering of Florida)
 Although not having much in common with
Adams personally, had much in common with
him politically.
The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
Early in 1825 it was announced that
Adams was the new President and that
Henry Clay would become the Secretary
of State.
 This decision angered Jackson because in
those days, the path to the White House
often (3 out of 4 times) ran through the
office of Secretary of State.

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
Jackson alleged that Adams had bribed
Clay to make him president with promises
of making Clay Sec. of State and making
Adams, the 2nd choice, President over
Jackson, the 1st choice.
 The masses, mostly backing Jackson, were
in an uproar as many people spoke out
against Henry Clay.

The “Corrupt Bargain” of 1824
No evidence has ever been given that Adams
and Clay entered in to a formal bargain.
 Clay was the natural choice and Adams was
known to be very honest.
 The outcry showed that change was in the wind
and no president from here on out (until maybe
2000) would be decided behind closed doors.

A Yankee Misfit in the White House
John Q. Adams ranks as one of the most
successful secretaries of state, but one of the
least successful president in history.
 The first “minority” president, Adams won
despite only earning 1/3 of the popular vote.
 It was clear that Adams was uncomfortable in
this dawning era of baby-kissing and
backslapping.

A Yankee Misfit in the White House
Adams only removed 12 public servants
from the payroll during his time in office.
 Unlike most presidents, Adams refused to
replace efficient officeholders in order to
create jobs for his supporters. This
obviously did not win him new supporters.

July
th
4
1826
John Adams dies on July 4th 1826 while
his son is President.
 His chief political rival, Thomas Jefferson
also dies on July 4th 1826.
 Jefferson said he wanted to die on July
4th.

Going “Whole Hog” for Jackson in
1828
Jackson started campaigning for the
Presidential election of 1828 in 1825
after John Adams was controversially
elected.
 By 1828, the temporarily united
Republicans were split into two camps;
National Republicans (Adams) and
Democratic Republicans (Jackson).

Going “Whole Hog” for Jackson in
1828
Though Jackson was seen publically as a
rough and tumble farmer, he was, in fact,
a wealthy planter who lived in a luxurious
mansion with many slaves.
 The 1828 campaign was one of the first
examples of political mudslinging and it
was ugly on both sides.

Going “Whole Hog” for Jackson in
1828
A story came out about Andrew and his
wife Rachel.
 Before she met Andrew, she was married
to a man named Robards (who was
paranoid about her “loose” ways).
 Rachel got a divorce, that she assumed
was finalized when she married Andrew.

Going “Whole Hog” for Jackson in
1828
Robards finds out and seeks the “final
actualization” of the divorce.
 Obviously, the National Republicans had
a field day with this.
 The Democrats made up a story that
Adams got an Americans girl in Moscow
to perform sexual favors for the Czar of
Russia.

Going “Whole Hog” for Jackson in
1828
Voter turnout was doubled among
eligible voters and it continued to
increase during the 1800s.
 Andrew Jackson sweeps to victory in
1828, defeating Adams easily.
 Jackson takes over in March of 1829.

“Old Hickory” as President
Jackson was the first president from the West
and the first nominated at a formal party
convention (1832 election).
 The was only the 2nd without a college
education (Washington being first).
 Essentially he was a frontier aristocrat who
owned many slaves, cultivated broad acres,
and lived in one of the finest mansions in
America.

“Old Hickory” as President
Jackson was the first to introduce the spoils
system- rewarding political supporters with
public office.
 At the time, Washington was due for a
housecleaning since there was no party
turnover since the 1800 election.
 It did have its problems as illiterates, crooks,
and incompetents bought positions of public
trust.

The Tricky “Tariff of Abominations”
Jackson inherited Adams’s headache when it
came to tariffs.
 Protective tariffs helped American business, but
it also allowed them to increase prices as well
as invite tariffs on American goods overseas.
 In 1824 Jacksonites promoted a high tariff bill,
expecting it to be defeated so they could
blame Adams.

The Tricky “Tariff of Abominations”
To their surprise, the tariff passed and in
1828, Jackson inherited the political hot
potato.
 Southerners were hostile to the tariffs (they
consumed manufactured goods, but didn’t
produce much).
 They branded the Tariff of 1828 the “Black
Tariff” or the “ Tariff of Abominations”

The Tricky “Tariff of Abominations”

So, why were the Southerners so mad?
 The
northeast was bustling because of the
protective tariffs.
 The West was prospering from high rising
property values and multiplying population.
 The Southwest was expanding onto cotton
lands.
 The Old South was falling on hard times.
The Tricky “Tariff of Abominations”
Southerners felt it wrong that they had to
pay high prices of manufactured goods,
but had no tariffs to protect the cotton
and farm goods that they sold.
 Deeper than that was the growing
anxiety about possible federal
interference with the institution of slavery.

The Tricky “Tariff of Abominations”
John C. Calhoun (VP under Jackson) went
as far as to write a pamphlet (The South
Carolina Exposition) calling the Tariff
unjust and unconstitutional (he had to
conceal his authorship as VP).
 The Exposition bluntly and explicitly
proposed that the states should nullify the
tariff.

“Nullies” in South Carolina
For Jackson’s first term the nullifiers“nullies” tried to muster the necessary 2/3
vote in the S.C. legislature.
 As they were blocked, Congress tipped
the balance by passing the Tariff of
1832, that still fell short of Southern
demands.

“Nullies” in South Carolina
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In the state elections of 1832, the “nullies” wore
palmetto ribbons on their hats to mark their loyalty
to the “Palmetto State” and emerged with more
than 2/3 majority.
Several weeks later, the delegates solemnly
declared the Tariff null and void in S.C.
Further, the convention threatened to take S.C. out
of the union if Washington attempted to collect
customs duties by force.
“Nullies” in South Carolina
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Jackson issued a ringing proclamation against
nullification and quietly dispatched naval and
military reinforcements to S.C.
He was not a hardened supporter of the tariff, but
he was not going to stand for any defiance or
disunion on his watch.
If civil war was to be avoided, one side would have
to back surrender, or both would have to
compromise.
“Nullies” in South Carolina
Although he was a foe of Jackson, Henry Clay
stepped up (he didn’t want to see Jackson get
anymore good publicity) and proposed a new
plan that would reduce the Tariff of 1832 by
about 10% over a period of 8 years.
 The compromise Tariff of 1833 squeezed
through Congress, which angered the New
England and middle states.

“Nullies” in South Carolina
Also passed was the Force Bill (known in the
Carolinas as the Bloody Bill) which allowed
the president to use the army and navy, if
necessary, to collect federal tariff duties.
 S.C. did not lose face, but they were upset
that no other southern states had sprung to
their support (VA and GA thought about it).

“Nullies” in South Carolina
Clay was hailed in Boston and Charleston
alike for saving the country.
 Armed conflict had been avoided, but
fundamental issues had not been
resolved.

The Trail of Tears
More than 125,000 Native Americans lived in
the forests and prairies east of the Mississippi
in the 1820s.
 Many white Americans felt respect and
admiration for the Indians and believed that
they could be assimilated into the white society.
 Much energy was put into “civilizing” and
Christianizing the Indians.

The Trail of Tears
In 1793 Congress appropriated $20,000 for
the promotion of literacy and agricultural
vocational instruction among the Indians.
 The Cherokees of Georgia made especially
remarkable efforts to learn the ways of the
whites.
 The gradually abandoned their seminomadic
lives and adopted a system of settled
agriculture as well as opening schools.

The Trail of Tears
In 1828 the Georgia legislature declared the
Cherokee tribal council illegal and asserted its
own jurisdiction over Indian affairs and Indian
lands.
 The Cherokees appealed to the Supreme Court
which thrice held up the rights of the Indians.
 Pres. Jackson refused to recognize the Court’s
decision.

The Trail of Tears
Jackson proposed to send the remaining
eastern tribes- Cherokees, Creeks, Choctaws,
Chickasaws, and Seminoles- beyond the
Mississippi.
 Emigration was supposed to be voluntary as
Jackson consoled himself with the idea that
they would just pick up and settle their native
culture in the wide-open west.

The Trail of Tears
Jackson’s policy led to the forced uprooting of
more than 100,000 Indians.
 In 1830 Congress passed the Indian Removal
Act, providing for the transplanting of all
Indian tribes then resident east of the
Mississippi.
 Countless Indians died on forced marches- most
notably the Cherokees along the Trail of Tearsto the newly established Indian Territory.

The Trail of Tears
On this land they were to be free of white
encroachments “permanently”.
 The land-hungry “palefaces” pushed farther
west faster than anticipated and the
“permanent” frontier lasted about 15 years.
 Natives from Illinois and Wisconsin were
bloodily crushed in the Black Hawk War of
1832 by regular troops.

The Trail of Tears
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Leaders of the regular army included Lieutenant
Jefferson Davis and Captain Abraham Lincoln of
Illinois.
In FL the Seminoles joined runaway black slaves into
the Everglades where they waged bitter guerilla
war over 7 years.
They were finally defeated when their leader,
Osceola was captured.
The Bank War
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President Jackson did not hate all banks and all
businesses, but he distrusted monopolistic banking
and overly big businesses.
What made the national bank a monster in
Jackson’s eyes?
The national government minted gold and silver
coins, but paper notes were printed by private
banks and value fluctuated w/ the health of the
banks.
The Bank War
Also, the amount of money printed fluctuated,
which gave private bankers considerable
power over the nation’s economy.
 No bank in America had as much power as the
Bank of the U.S..
 The Bank acted as a branch of government, as
it was the principal depository for the funds of
the Washington government.

The Bank War
Its notes, unlike those of many smaller banks
were stable in value.
 The Bank was privately owned so it was
accountable to its investors, not the people.
 Its president, Nicholas Biddle, held an
immense- and to many unconstitutionalamount of power over the nation’s financial
affairs.

The Bank War
The Bank War erupted in 1832, when
Daniel Webster and Henry Clay
presented Congress with a bill to renew
the Bank’s charter.
 Clay, as chief rival to Jackson in the
election of 1832 and he thought pushing
for charter renewal would give him an
edge in the election.

The Bank War
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He wanted to leave the decision to sign or not sign
to Jackson; not to sign would give Clay an edge in
the election and signing it would alienate Jackson’s
followers in the West.
After sliding through Congress, Jackson vehemently
vetoed the charter, declaring the monopolistic bank
unconstitutional.
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) declared it
constitutional, but Jackson considered the executive
branch superior to the judicial branch.
“Old Hickory” Wallops Clay in 1832
For the 1st time, a 3rd party entered the fieldthe Anti-Masonic party- which opposed the
influence and fearsome secrecy of the Masonic
order.
 They were influenced by the disappearance
and probably murder in 1826 of a New
Yorker who was threatening to expose the
secrets of the Masons.

“Old Hickory” Wallops Clay in 1832
Their political force spread quickly through NY
and into the middle Atlantic and New England
states.
 Since Jackson was a Mason, the Anti-Masonic
party was partly an anti-Jackson party, but
also attracted evangelical Protestant groups
seeking to use political power to effect moral
and religious reforms.

“Old Hickory” Wallops Clay in 1832

2 new things from election of 1832;
 National
nominating conventions
 Adoption of formal platforms, publicizing
their positions on the issues

Even though Clay had more money
backing him, Jackson easily defeated
Clay taking 219 electoral votes to Clay’s
49
Burying Biddle’s Bank
Jackson was not content with allowing the
Bank’s charter to simply expire in 1836.
 He was concerned that Biddle would
manipulate the bank so as to force it recharter.
 In 1833 Jackson set in motion a plan to stop
making government deposits to Biddle and
then slowly siphon the reserves to bleed the
bank dry.

Burying Biddle’s Bank
Biddle tried to show the importance of the
ban by producing a minor financial crisis.
 The death of the Bank left a financial
vacuum in the American economy and kicked
off a cycle of booms and busts.
 Surplus funds were placed in so-called pet
banks, chosen for their pro-Jackson
sympathies.

Burying Biddle’s Bank
These pet banks flooded the country with
paper money and Jackson authorized the
Treasury to issue a Specie Circular- all public
lands to be purchased with “hard”, or metallic,
money.
 This slammed the brakes on the speculative
boom, which contributed to a financial panic
and crash in 1837.
 By that time, Jackson was long since retired.

The Birth of the Whigs
As early as 1828, the Democratic-Republicans
had adopted the once-tainted name
“Democrats”.
 Jackson’s opponents began to coalesce as the
Whigs- a name deliberately chosen to
recollect 18th century British and Revolutionary
American opposition to the monarchy of “King
Andrew I”.

The Birth of the Whigs

The Whigs first emerged as an
identifiable group in the Senate, where
Clay, Webster, and Calhoun joined forces
in 1834 to pass a motion censuring
Jackson for his single-handed removal of
federal deposits.
The Birth of the Whigs


The Whigs attracted: supporters of Clay’s
American System, southern states’ righters, larger
northern industrialists and merchants, and
evangelical Protestants associated with the AntiMasonic party
The Whigs, though conservative, were progressive
in that they favored internal improvement (roads,
canals, railroads, telegraph lines, asylums, prisons,
and public schools) over western expansion.
The Election of 1836
Jackson, nearing 70, rigged the nominating
convention to nominate his VP Martin Van
Buren, although most Democrats were not
too excited about him.
 The Whigs tried to run several “favorite
sons” with regional appeal so that they
didn’t have to nominate just one candidate.

The Election of 1836
They were hoping to create a logjam that
would throw the deadlocked election to
the House of Representatives, where the
Whigs might have a chance to win.
 Van Buren defeated William Henry
Harrison of Ohio and hero of the Battle
of Tippecanoe 170 electoral votes to
124.

Big Woes for the “Little Magician”
Martin Van Buren was the first to be born
under the American flag.
 The myth of his mediocrity sprouted
mostly from a series of misfortunes over
which he had no control.

Big Woes for the “Little Magician”
incurred the resentment of many
Democrats as well as the many enemies
of Jackson.
 Worst of all, Jackson bequeathed to Van
Buren the makings of a nearing
depression.

He
Depression Doldrums and the
Independent Treasury
The panic of 1837 was a symptom of
rampant western land speculation and the
shaky currency of the “wildcat banks”.
 Grain prices rose so high that mobs in
NYC stormed warehouses and broke open
barrels.

Depression Doldrums and the
Independent Treasury
The collapse of 2 banks in England forced
British investors to call in foreign loans.
 Americans banks collapsed by the
hundreds, including some “pet banks”,
which carried down with them several
million in government funds.

Gone to Texas
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In 1823 Stephen Austin was granted a huge tract of
land in Texas by Mexico under the agreement that
300 American families would settle and become
Mexicanized.
The Americans resented this Mexicanization and
remained American at heart.
By 1835, there were more than 35,000 Texan
Americans (including Davy Crockett, Jim Bowie and
ex-TN Governor Sam Houston).
Gone to Texas
Houston’s new bride (of only a few weeks) left
him and took up residence with a group of
Arkansas Indians who referred to Houston as
“Big Drunk”.
 Also, the issue of slavery created a disturbance
between the Mexicans and the Texans.
 Mexico emancipated slaves in 1830, but the
Texans kept their slaves in bondage.

Gone to Texas
Stephen Austin went to the Mexican
government to try and air out the
grievances, the dictator Santa Anna threw
him in jail for 8 months.
 In 1835, Santa Anna wiped out all local
rights and raised an army to suppress the
upstart Texans.

The Lone Star Rebellion
In early 1836 the Texans declared their
independence and named Sam Houston
commander in chief.
 Santa Anna, with the aid of 6,000 men swept
into Texas and laid siege to the Alamo in San
Antonio for 13 days against 200 Texans.
 400 Mexican soldiers surrounded the
volunteers who were unarmed and butchered
them.

The Lone Star Rebellion
Slain heroes like Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett,
well-known in life, became legendary in death.
 Texan war cries- “Remember the Alamo!”
“Remember Goliad!” and “Death to Santa
Anna!” swept into the U.S. as scores of vengeful
Americans grabbed rifles and came to the aid
of their relatives, friends, and compatriots.

The Lone Star Rebellion
Gen. Sam Houston lured Santa Anna to
San Jacinto (just outside present day
Houston) and defeated his army on April
21, 1836 while they were on a siesta.
 Santa Anna was found cowering in tall
grass near the battlefield and was forced
to sign two treaties.

The Lone Star Rebellion
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He was forced to withdraw Mexican troops and to
recognize the Rio Grande as the extreme
southwestern boundary of Texas.
When release he said the treaties were void
because he was forced to sign under duress.
Many people wanted Texas to become part of the
U.S., but slavery presented a tough issue.
The Lone Star Rebellion
Most Texan settlers came from the south
and southwest, which were slave holding
states.
 The fact remained that many Texans were
slaveholders and admitting Texas to the
Union inescapably meant enlarging
American slavery.

Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840
Van Buren was renominated by the Democrats
in 1840 without much enthusiasm (called
“Martin Van Ruin” by the Whigs).
 The Whigs threw their support behind Ohioan
William Henry Harrison, instead of the
regional tactic of 1836.
 “Old Tippecanoe” was nominated because he
was issueless and enemyless.

Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840



John Tyler of VA was selected as his vicepresident.
The Whigs campaigned on no official platform as
they were hoping to just slide Harrison into office.
A Democrat editor played into their hands when
he claimed that Harrison was an impoverished old
farmer who should be content with a pension, a
log cabin, and a barrel of hard cider.
Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840
Harrisonites portrayed their hero as the poor
“Farmer from North Bend” who had been
called from his cabin and plow to drive corrupt
Jackson spoilsmen from the “presidential
palace.”
 The Whig campaign was a masterpiece of
inane hoopla.
 Whigs rolled huge inflated balls from village
to village and state to state.

Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840
These balls represented the snowballing
majority for “Tippecanoe and Tyler too.”
 Harrison was a member of one of the
First Families of Virginia, lived in a 16
room mansion on a 3,000 acre farm, and
drank whiskey, not hard cider (poor man’s
champagne).

Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840
Harrison won by a surprisingly close
margin on the popular vote, but won an
overwhelming margin on the electoral
side (234 to 60).
 Whigs sought to expand and stimulate
the economy, while Democrats favored
retrenchment and an end to high-flying
banks and aggressive corporations.

Log Cabins and Hard Cider of 1840


“Tippecanoe and Tyler too” original version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9XcDeRJ_Osc&s
afety_mode=true&safe=active&persist_safety_mo
de=1
“Tippecanoe and Tyler too” They Might be Giants
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFaRklAYanY&sa
fety_mode=true&safe=active&persist_safety_mod
e=1
The Two-Party System

2 things happened during the election of
1840;
 The
triumph of a populist democratic style.
 The formation of a vigorous and durable two-party
system.

The idea had prevailed that parties of any
sort smacked of conspiracy and “faction” and
were injurious to the health of the body politic
in a republic.
The Two-Party System
Jacksonian Democrats glorified the liberty of
the individual and were fiercely on guard
against the inroads of “privilege” into
government.
 Whigs trumpeted the natural harmony of
society and the value of community.
 Whigs also berated leaders whose appeals to
self-interest fostered conflict among individuals,
classes, or sections.
