Jackson

Essay by PaperNerd ContributorHigh School, 11th grade August 2001

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Andrew Jackson- Election of 1828 against John Quincy Adams was vicious. Devoting little time to the issues of the day, and more time to attacking the other candidates personal life. Thus, the modern political campaign was born. Used "spoils system". Jacksonian democracy replaced Jeffersonian democracy. Jacksonian democracy was based on universal manhood suffrage. Extended voting rights to all men even those who didnt own property. Jackson pursure an agressive Indian Removal program. Removal Act of 1830 set in motion the Trail of Tears in 1838 , forced march of Cherokees that resulted in thousands of deaths by sickness and starvation. Jackson was against the Bank of the US. Halted programs associated wtih Clay's American System. One of Jackson's major issues as president was nullification. Tariff of 1828(Tariff of Abominations) was bpassed during the Adams administration, but it almost turned into a nation crisis during the Jackson administration, when some states considerd nullifying the tariff in 1830.

Jackson, though a strong supporter of states' rights , thought nullification endagered the Union and was thus too extreme. The 1830 nullification movement failed but it laid the groundwork for opposition to the Tariff of 1832, which South Carolina nullifed. Jackson threatend to call in troops to enforce the tariff but in the meantime he worked behind the scenes to reach a compromise that would diffuse tensions. The Force Bill allowed the President to use arms in South Carolina to enforce the tariff. Although the crisis subsided wtih the compromise, no resolution was reached over the question of nullification and it would continue to be an issue till the Civil War. Jackson fought the Second Bank of the US because he felt it protected N.Eastern interests at the expense of the West. He also didnt liek paper money but favored "hard money"(gold and silver. His Specie Circular, which ended the policy of selling govt. Land on credt (buyers now had to pay "hard cash") , caused a money shorage and sharp decrease in the treasury and overall economic hardship. Congress overturned the circular in the final days of Jackson's final term.