Essential Question:

Champion of the “Common Man”?

OR

“King” Andrew?

Politics and Democracy

• Era of Good Feelings not always tranquil, especially with Panic of 1819 and the Missouri Compromise • For health of democracy, vigorous political conflict was considered necessary. • In 1824, the political landscape was similar to 1790, but by 1840, it would have been unrecognizable.

Jacksonian Era

• Characterized by boisterous democracy and strong political parties, unlike the Era of Good Feelings • Political parties no longer feared but accepted as a necessary evil of political life.

• 1828, Democratic party forms and in 1830, the Whigs are created.

Voting Requirements in the Early 19c

Voter Turnout: 1820 - 1860

Campaigning “on the Stump”

Why Increased Democratization?

- White male suffrage increased - Party nominating committees.

- Voters chose their state’s slate of Presidential electors.

- Spoils system.

- Rise of Third Parties.

- Popular campaigning (parades, rallies, floats, etc.) - Two-party system returned in the 1832 election:



Dem-Reps

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Natl. Reps.(1828) (1832)

 

Whigs Republicans (1854)



Democrats (1828)

The “Common Man’s” Presidential Candidate

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Jackson’s Faith in the “Common Man”

Intense distrust of Eastern “establishment,” monopolies, & special privilege.

His heart & soul was with the “plain folk.” Belief that the common man was capable of uncommon achievements.

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The New “Jackson Coalition”

The Planter Elite in the South People on the Frontier Artisans [competition from factory labor].

State Politicians 

spoils system



To the victor belong the spoils of

the enemy! [William Marcy of NY]

Immigrants in the cities.

Jackson’s Opponents in 1824

Henry Clay [KY] John Quincy Adams [MA] John C. Calhoun [SC] William H. Crawford [GA]

Election of 1824

• John Quincy Adams (Massachusetts) – Experienced, aloof, and highly intelligent, and former secretary of state • Henry Clay (Kentucky) – “Harry of the West” Senator and Member of the House of Representatives • William H. Crawford (Georgia) – Able politician and former Secretary of War and of the Treasury • • Andrew Jackson (Tennessee) – Hero of New Orleans, General in Florida, and various battles against Native Americans.

All claimed to be Republicans and John C. Calhoun was vice president for both Adams and Jackson

Results of the 1824 Election A “ Corrupt Bargain

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http://www.youtube.com/w atch?v=EMuxMKNtdEg

Election of 1824

• Jackson won both popular vote and electoral vote, but did not have a majority in the electoral college so the House of Representatives had to decide the outcome.

• Henry Clay was Speaker of the House, so he would preside over the vote for the President. Obviously a conflict of interest because he just ran against Jackson and Adams .

• Clay eliminated because not top 3. He dislikes Jackson, and Crawford just suffered a stroke. So he throws his weight and prestige behind Adams (Both nationalists and in favor of the American System

Corrupt Bargain

• The vote came early in 1825, and John Quincy Adams won. • A few days later, Henry Clay was chosen as Secretary of State, a prestigious position at the time in which three of the four preceding secretaries had reached the presidency. • Jackson’s supporters were certain that Adams bribed Clay and made the people’s second choice the victor over their first choice.

• • Jacksonians raised a roar of protest and Jackson condemned Clay as the “Judas of the West.” Side Note: Clay challenges John Randolph of Virginia to a duel for being called a mackerel. Bad markmanship and nerves meant both missed.

Legacy of the Corrupt Bargain

• No credible or physical evidence confirming that Adams and Clay made a corrupt deal • Clay was a logical choice and Adams did have a reputation for honesty and not cronyism • But it was still seen as choosing the president behind closed doors and would have a lasting effect on Adams presidency.

John Quincy Adams

• As the book says, a chip of the old family glacier.

• Short, thickset, and billiard bald.

• Often went for a naked swim in the Potomac river early in the morning (imagine this in today’s world) • • Irritable, sarcastic, and tactless. A thinker more than a politician. But came to the office with a stellar record as Secretary of State .

Wrote in his journal: I am a man of reserved, cold, austere, and forbidding manners: my political adversaries say, a gloomy misanthropist, and my personal enemies an unsocial savage.”

John Quincy Adams

• First minority president who entered office under rumors and suspicions of corrupt bargains, corruption, and usurpation. • Only received a 1/3 of popular votes • Refused to oust officeholders to create vacancies for his supporters • Many believed why should they work hard if no favors will be handed out.

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Opposition to John Quincy Adams

Some believed he allowed too much political control to be held by elites.

Some objected to his support of national economic development on constitutional grounds.

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Adams believed a strong, active central government was necessary.



A national university.

 

An astronomical observatory.

A naval academy.



Construction of roads and canals Many Americans saw Adams’ vision of a mighty nation led by a strong president as a threat to individual liberties.

John Quincy Adams

• Many Americans outraged about the idea of a national observatory, seeing it as a waste of federal money. • South hated idea of increased spending due to larger central government and were fearful that an enlarged central government would encroach on slavery and abolish it.

• His western land policies also enraged many people. – Tried to treat Cherokee fairly despite the desire of Georgians to have them out of their state. Governor of Georgia threatened armed resistance • In the end, the presidency of Adams was marred from the beginning with screams of corruption and was never fully accepted by the masses.

Election of 1828

1828 Election Results

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The 1828 Election

Jackson’s campaign was engineered by Senator Martin Van Buren of NY

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He wanted to recreate the old Jeffersonian coalition of:

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Northern farmers and artisans.

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Southern slave owners.

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Farmers with small land holdings.

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He created the Democratic Party from the remains of Jefferson’s old party:

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Created a national committee that oversaw local and state party units.

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Mass meetings, parades, picnics.

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A lot of political mudslinging on both sides.

Election of 1828

• National Republicans – Led by Adams • Democratic-Republicans (Democrats) – Led by Jackson • Jackson hailed as champion of the common man • Adams denounced as a corrupt aristocrat and that the will of the people was ignored in the bargain of 1825.

• • With his victory, the political center of gravity moves from the east to the states west of the Appalachians. Jackson wins 178-83.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPIURHVK9oo

Andrew Jackson

• Tall, lean, with gray bushy hair. • Irritable and emaciated due to the following conditions: – Dysentery, malaria, tuberculosis, and lead poisoning from two bullets lodged in his body from two duels. • Born in Carolinas and orphaned early. Lived with little to no parental constraints. • Not formally schooled. Learned to read and write but struggled with grammar and spelling.

• Moved to Tennessee where fighting was more important than writing. Through strength of personality, natural intelligence, and powers of leadership, he became a judge and member of congress.

Andrew Jackson

• First president from the West, first nominated at a formal party convention (1832), and only second without a college degree. • Born as one of the masses, but made himself into a frontier aristocrat. Owned many slaves and acres of farmland and had one of the largest mansions in the United States at Hermitage.

Jackson’s First Hermitage Residence

Hermitage Andrew Jackson’s Home

First Known Painting of Jackson, 1815

General Jackson During the Seminole Wars

Rachel Jackson

Final Divorce Decree

Jackson in Mourning for His Wife

The Reign of “King Mob”

Jackson’s Inauguration

• Inauguration represented the ascendency of the masses • Hickoryrites poured into the capital and slept on hotel floors and hallways.

• • Nobodies mingled with notables at the White House. (1:00) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGfxyeuy8u 8&feature=related

Jackson as Satan Dangles the Spoils of Victory over his Supporters

Spoils System

• Spoils System, rewarding political supporters with public office, was instituted on a grand scale by Jackson.

• Marcy: “To the victor belong the spoils of the enemy.” • Jackson defended it on democratic grounds: – Every man is a good as his neighbor.

– Argued to bring in new blood and give them their turn in office and not breed an aristocratic/ruling class of politicians. • Washington did need a good housecleaning since no party has ruled other than the Democratic-Republicans since 1800 (Some people were in office since Washington)

Spoils System

• Negatives: – Many asked not “what can you do for your country” and asked “what can you do for your party or Jackson?” – Scandal also was common. People essentially paid their way in and many were illiterate, incompetent, or just crooks.

– Samuel Swartwout was collector of the customs in New York port. 9 years later he left and had stolen a million dollars from the federal government • Positives – Helped establish the two-party system as the promise of patronage helped convince Americans to choose a party and stick with it.

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Tariff Battles

Tariff of 1816



textiles.

on imports of cheap Tariff of 1824



on iron goods and more expensive woolen and cotton imports.

Tariff of 1828



higher tariffs on imported raw materials [like wool & hemp].



Supported by Jacksonians to gain votes from farmers in NY, OH, KY.

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The South alone was adamantly against it.

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As producers of the world’s cheapest cotton, it did not need a protective tariff.

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They were negatively impacted



American textiles and iron goods [or the taxed English goods] were more expensive!

Votes in the House for the “Tariff of Abomination”

Tariffs

• Andrew Jackson inherited the tariff issue in 1828. • Jacksonians supported the bill expecting it to be defeated and prove disastrous for President Adams, but the bill passed and Jackson inherited the ramifications, especially with the Southern states hating the bill • South termed the bill “Black Bill” or the “Tariff of Abominations ” • In South Carolina, flags lowered to half-mast. ‘Let the

New

England beware how she imitates the

Old ”

Southern Protests

• Believed that the Yankee tariff discriminated against them: – North experiencing a boom in manufacturing – West benefiting from rising property values and increased population – Southwest was expanding into cotton lands • But Old South was falling on hard times and the tariff caused further strife. • Southern goods sold on the unprotected world market but forced to buy American manufactured goods in an American market protected by tariffs. Felt as if they were stuck with the bill.

Southern Protests

• At the heart of the protest over tariffs was also the fear that the federal government and the North would interfere with slavery. • Fears increased when Denmark Vesey, a free black, led a slave revolt in 1822 in South Carolina. • • Also, the British abolitionists were pressuring London for the end of slavery in the West Indies, and southerners feared that these same demands would come to America.

The South Carolina Exposition

– Secretly written by John Calhoun – Denounced the tariff and said the states should find it null and void

1832 Tariff Conflict

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1832 --> new tariff South Carolina’s reaction

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Jackson’s response

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Clay’s “Compromise” Tariff

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Nullies

• In South Carolina, the “nullies” tried to get 2/3 vote necessary for nullification. • But blocked by “Unionists” in South Carolina Congress • Tariff of 1832 passed by U.S Congress, and pared away worst of the abominations, but it still did not satisfy the southerners. • 1832 South Carolina state election, Nullies went head-to-head with Unionists and crushed them. Nullies emerged with more than two-thirds majority

Nullies

• Few weeks later, a special convention called the tariff null and void in South Carolina and if the federal government interfered, they would take South Carolina out of the union. • Jackson reacts by threatening to invade the states and have the nullies hanged. • He also raises an army and sends naval reinforcements. • Makes proclamation against nullification and former senator Robert Hayne makes counterproclamation.

• Lines drawn in the sand. To avoid civil war, one side would have to surrender or a compromise would need to be made.

Calhoun Ascends the Platform that Leads to Despotism

Compromise of 1833

• Henry Clay steps up to offer a compromise on the Tariff of 1832. – Slowly decrease the tariff by 10% over 8 years so that the rates in 1842 would be at the mildly protective level of 1816 • Compromise opposed by the industrial Northeast and middle states, but supported by the South, since it avoided military action • • But, Congress also passed the Force Bill, stating the President can use the army and navy to collect federal tariff duties http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TK8PHLLdO2 k

Who won? Jackson or

•

Nullies

• Neither Jackson nor the nullies won. • Henry Clay was the hero of the hour, hailed for saving the union from armed conflict.

• Remember, Clay orchestrated the Missouri Compromise also and will be the lead role in the Compromise of 1850 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ jm42AS9tko&safety_mode=true&p ersist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Western Expansion

• Western expansion, supported by the Democrats, eventually meant further confrontation with the Native Americans.

• Among the tribes, the Cherokee made efforts to assimilate to European and White culture. – Sequoyah creates alphabet – Notion of private property and agriculture – A legal code created (1808) – And a constitution created with three branches of government (1827) • Some Cherokees became cotton farmers and even owned slaves • Cherokees, Choctaws, Creek, Seminoles, and Chickasaws known as Five Civilized Tribes.

The Cherokee Nation After 1820

However….

• All this embrace of civilization meant nothing: – In 1828, Georgian legislature declared Cherokee tribal council illegal and asserted its authority over tribal affairs and land • Cherokees appeal to Supreme Court, who upheld their rights as an independent nation who was not under the jurisdiction of the states, but of the United States federal government.

• Jackson: John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it.

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Indian Removal

Jackson’s Goal ?

1830



Indian Removal Act

Cherokee Nation v. GA

* (1831) “domestic dependent nation”

Worcester v. GA

(1832) Jackson:

John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it!

Indian Removal Act

• At first, relocation was suppose to be voluntary, but 100,000 Native Americans would be forcibly relocated to lands in Oklahoma • The Five Civilized Tribes suffered the most and many died on the forced marches.

• The lands were suppose to be free of white encroachment but this was only true for fifteen years. • Bureau of Indian Affairs established in 1836. • Sauk and Fox Indians led by Black Hawk resisted relocation, but crushed by regular troops in 1832 including Lieutenant Jefferson Davis and Captain Abraham Lincoln. • • In Florida, Seminoles along with runaway black slaves, retreated to swampy Everglades. In 1837, Seminoles not officially defeated, but their leader Osceola was seized. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SJbwydQXYk&feature=channel&list=UL&safety_mode=true &persist_safety_mode=1&safe=active

Jackson’s Professed “Love” for Native Americans

Indian Removal

Trail of Tears (1838 1839)

The National Bank Debate

Nicholas Biddle

[an arrogant aristocrat from Philadelphia] Nicholas Biddle was president Of the BUS. Enemies of the Bank called him Czar Nicholas I.

Many believed the bank was Full of corruption.

President Jackson

The National Bank Debate

• Andrew Jackson hates the Bank of the United States. Why?

– Federal govt minted gold and silver coins. – Paper notes printed by private banks, whose worth fluctuated with the health of the bank. This gave private bankers considerable power over the nation’s economy.

– BUS was the most powerful bank in America. It stored the reserves of gold and silver and printed very stable paper currency. Important part of the nation’s growing economy. – BUT, it was not accountable to the people since it was a private institution, it was antithetical to democracy.

– For Jackson, it was responsible for Panic of 1819 and the forclosure of many western famrs. Lastly, its main goal was profit, not public service .

The National Bank Debate

• 1832, Henry Clay and Daniel Webster ask for the charter of the BUS to be renewed, even though not due up until 1836. – Clay wanted to force Jackson’s hand . If he passed the bill, he would alienate the western vote. If vetoed the bill, the wealthy and influential groups in the east would not vote for him.

• Andrew Jackson, in 1832, vetoed the bill and declared it unconstitutional, (even though the Supreme Court ruled it was constitutional in McCuloch v Maryland) • The veto essentially states the executive branch was more powerful than the others.

Clays Sews Up Jackson’s Mouth

An 1832 Cartoon : “King Andrew ”

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1832 Election Results

1832 Election

• Three things make it memorable: – Third-party enters the race, the Anti-Masons – Also, national nominating conventions used for the first time. – Anti-Masons and National-Republicans also added party platforms. • Anti-Masons formed out of their fear and opposition to the secrecy of the Masonic order. – 1826 murder of a man who threatened to talk about the secret rituals energized the creation of the Anti-Masons.

– Jackson was a Mason so Anti-Masons became an anti-Jackson party.

Positions on the Key

• • • • • •

Issues of 1832

DEMOCRATS National-Republicans • Less concerned about the widening gap between rich and poor.

Opposed “liberal capitalism” because they believed it would lead to economic chaos.

Strong national govt. to coordinate the expanding economy was critical.

Opposes Indian removal.

Favored tariffs.

Supported a National Bank.

• • • • • • • Felt the widening gap between rich and poor was alarming.

Believed that bankers, merchants, and speculators were “non-producers” who used their govt. connections to line their own pockets.

Govt. should have a hands off approach to the economy to allow the little guy a chance to prosper.

For Indian removal.

Oppose tariffs.

States’ rights.

Oppose federal support for internal improvements.

Opposed the National Bank.

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The “Monster” Is Destroyed!

“Pet Banks” 1832



Jackson vetoed the extension of the 2 nd National Bank of the United States.

1836



the charter expired.

1841



bankrupt!

the bank went

The Death of the BUS

• Jackson felt that his reelection in 1832 was a mandate to exterminate the bank. Plus he did not trust Biddle.

• So in 1833, he decided to remove all federal deposits from its vaults.

• No more deposits and slowly siphon off the government funds to bleed the bank dry and destroy it • Jackson’s cabinet advised against this vindictive move. So he shuffled his cabinet twice until he got a Secretary of the Treasury who would go with his plan. • Biddle calls in loans causing a mini panic. And the death of the bank causes booms and busts and also pet banks (pro-Jackson) which issued to much paper money. • In 1836, Jackson was forced to issue the Specie Circular. Demanded that all public lands be bought with hard money. This stopped the speculative boom that contributes to the Panic of 1837

The Specie Circular 1836

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Speculators created

“wildcat banks”

that fueled the runaway inflation.

So, buy future federal land only with gold or silver.

 This move shocked the system.

Jackson’s goal



to curb the land speculation.

Results of the Specie Circular

$

Banknotes loose their value.

$

Land sales plummeted.

$

Credit not available.

$

Businesses began to fail.

$

Unemployment rose.

The Panic of 1837!

The Downfall of “Mother Bank”

Andrew Jackson in Retirement

Photo of Andrew Jackson in 1844 (one year before his death)

1767 - 1845

The Whigs

• Hatred of Jackson unified the Whigs • But they were a diverse group: – Emerged as group in the Senate Clay, Webster, and Calhoun in reaction to Jackson removing federal deposits from the BUS.

– Others joined: Those in favor of Clay’s American System, southern states offended by nullification, northern industrialists and merchants, and evangelical Protestants aligned with the anti-Masons .

The Whigs

• Thought of themselves as conservatives, but progressive in many ways: – Support of government programs such as internal improvements – Institutions such as prisons, asylums, and public schools. • Supporters of the market economy but not fat cats as the Democrats tried to describe them. • Turned Democratic rhetoric on their head as they portrayed Jackson and Van Buren as aristocrats and the Whigs as the champion of the common man.

• Said Democratic party was one of cronyism and corruption

The 1836 Election Results

Martin Van Buren “Old Kinderhook” [O. K.]

Election of 1836

• Jackson supported Martin Van Buren • Whigs nominated three candidates with regional appeal in hope of limiting Van Buren’s chance of a majority and throwing the race into the House. • Henry William Harrison was leading Whig candidate.

Martin Van Buren

Nice Side-Burns!!!!!!!

First president to be born under the American flag. - statesman of wide experience in both legislative and administrative life. - above average, according to the book, in intelligence education, and training of the presidents since Jackson.

- myth of his mediocrity stems from inheriting an economic mess from Jackson and also some other misfortunes out of his control.

Van Buren inherited Jackson’s enemies but lacked Jackson’s popularity. - Really doomed from the start due to crisis brewing in 1837 also other issues like the rebellion in Canada in 1837

Panic of 1837

• Causes: – Basic cause was rampant speculation and get-rich quick schemes.

• Western speculators were operating on borrowed capital from shaky sources like the wildcat banks. It was a system just waiting to implode.

– Bank War and Specie Circular – Hessian Fly destroying Wheat crops – Failure of banks in London in 1836 forced British bankers to call in loans

The Panic of 1837 Spreads Quickly!

The Panic of 1837 Hits Everyone!

Panic of 1837

• Whigs response: – Expansion of bank credit – Higher tariffs – Subsidies for internal improvements • Van Buren’s Response – Divorce Bill- idea of divorcing the federal government from banking altogether.

– Establish an independent treasury to store government surplus money – Government resources safe bit not available to banks, shriveling available credit resources.