![]() Violence seemed imminent until Clay negotiated a compromise: tariffs were lowered and South Carolina dropped nullification. When South Carolina undertook to nullify the tariff, Jackson ordered armed forces to Charleston and privately threatened to hang Calhoun. Calhoun, leader of forces trying to rid themselves of a high protective tariff. Jackson met head-on the challenge of John C. ![]() His views won approval from the American electorate in 1832 he polled more than 56 percent of the popular vote and almost five times as many electoral votes as Clay. “The bank,” Jackson told Martin Van Buren, “is trying to kill me, but I will kill it!” Jackson, in vetoing the recharter bill, charged the Bank with undue economic privilege. When Jackson appeared hostile toward it, the Bank threw its power against him.Ĭlay and Webster, who had acted as attorneys for the Bank, led the fight for its recharter in Congress. The greatest party battle centered around the Second Bank of the United States, a private corporation but virtually a Government-sponsored monopoly. Hostile cartoonists portrayed him as King Andrew I.īehind their accusations lay the fact that Jackson, unlike previous Presidents, did not defer to Congress in policy-making but used his power of the veto and his party leadership to assume command. Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and other Whig leaders proclaimed themselves defenders of popular liberties against the usurpation of Jackson. Decrying officeholders who seemed to enjoy life tenure, he believed Government duties could be “so plain and simple” that offices should rotate among deserving applicants.Īs national politics polarized around Jackson and his opposition, two parties grew out of the old Republican Party–the Democratic Republicans, or Democrats, adhering to Jackson and the National Republicans, or Whigs, opposing him. Already state machines were being built on patronage, and a New York Senator openly proclaimed “that to the victors belong the spoils. He also tried to democratize Federal officeholding. In his first Annual Message to Congress, Jackson recommended eliminating the Electoral College. In 1824 some state political factions rallied around Jackson by 1828 enough had joined “Old Hickory” to win numerous state elections and control of the Federal administration in Washington. A major general in the War of 1812, Jackson became a national hero when he defeated the British at New Orleans. He was the first man elected from Tennessee to the House of Representatives, and he served briefly in the Senate. Jackson prospered sufficiently to buy slaves and to build a mansion, the Hermitage, near Nashville. Fiercely jealous of his honor, he engaged in brawls, and in a duel killed a man who cast an unjustified slur on his wife Rachel. But in his late teens he read law for about two years, and he became an outstanding young lawyer in Tennessee. More nearly than any of his predecessors, Andrew Jackson was elected by popular vote as President he sought to act as the direct representative of the common man.īorn in a backwoods settlement in the Carolinas in 1767, he received sporadic education. ![]() The biography for President Jackson and past presidents is courtesy of the White House Historical Association.Īndrew Jackson was the seventh President of the United States from 1829 to 1837, seeking to act as the direct representative of the common man. Get Involved Show submenu for “Get Involved””.The White House Show submenu for “The White House””.Office of the United States Trade Representative. ![]() Office of Science and Technology Policy.Executive Offices Show submenu for “Executive Offices””.Administration Show submenu for “Administration””.
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