History-1301: Chapter 10 Overview

Martin Van Buren

- Jackson benefited from a powerful Democratic party "machine" run by Martin Van Buren - Jackson's secretary of state, late vice president - a NY lawyer w/ a shrewd political sense - did not worry over the rise of political parties; saw them as necessary elements of a republic - gets credit for nurturing development of Jackson's Democratic party

Peggy Eaton Affair- "Petticoat Affair"

- Jackson's administration was divided between supporters of Secretary of State Martin Van Buren and VP John C. Calhoun > in his rivalry with Calhoun, Van Buren took full advantage of a social scandal- the Peggy Eaton affair

Andrew Jackson as "The Common Man"

- election was the climax of 30 yrs of democratic innovations > during 1820s-1830s, political life was transformed as more landless White men were allowed to vote/hold office - Jackson promised to protect "the poor and humble" from the "tyranny of wealth and power" > goal: to elevate "laboring classes" of White men who "love liberty and desire nothing but equal rights and equal laws" - he was actually quite forceful and critics said he was monarchical

A Third Party

- for the first time in an election, a third party entered the field > The grassroots movement known as the Anti-Masonic party grew out of popular hostility toward the Masonic fraternal orde

Chronology

> 1828: Andrew Jackson wins presidential election Tariff of Abominations goes into effect > 1830: Congress passes the Indian Removal Act Andrew Jackson vetoes the Maysville Road Bill The Eaton affair divides Andrew Jackson's warring cabinet > 1831: Supreme Court issues Cherokee Nation v. Georgia decision > 1832: Supreme Court issues Worcester v. Georgia decision Andrew Jackson vetoes the Bank Recharter Bill South Carolina passes Nullification Ordinance > 1833: Congress passes the Force Bill, authorizing military force in South Carolina Congress passes Henry Clay's compromise tariff with Jackson's support > 1836: Democratic candidate Martin Van Buren is elected president > 1837 Financial panic deflates the economy > 1838-1839 Eastern Indians forced west on Trail of Tears > 1840 Independent Treasury Act established > 1840 Whig candidate William Henry Harrison is elected president

Vice President John C. Calhoun

> became President Jackson's fiercest critic because of changing conditions in his home state of South Carolina

Jacksonian Era

> continuing industrialization > rapidly growing cities > rising tensions between the North and South over slavery > accelerating westward expansion > the emergence of the second two-party system, featuring Democrats and Whigs

Jackson's "rotation in office"

> he replaced many federal officials w/ his supporters - goal to dislodge the eastern political elite - according to Jackson govt. jobs belonged to the people - during Jackson's two terms, he replaced 1/5 of the federal officeholders w/ friends and supporters, not all of whom were qualified for their new positions

Andrew Jackson's Goals

> wanted to reduce federal spending > pay off the federal debt (a "national curse") > destroy the Second Bank of the United States (B.U.S.) > relocate the "ill-fated race" of Indians from the East to the West so that Whites could exploit their ancestral lands - in pursuing these ambitious goals, he exercised presidential authority more boldly than any of his predecessors

The Jackson Years

Andrew Jackson's America was very different from the America of 1776. Most White men had gained the vote when states removed property qualifications for voting, but political equality did not mean economic equality. Democrats wanted every American to have an equal chance to compete in the marketplace and in the political arena, but they never promoted equality of results. Inequality between rich and poor widened during the Jacksonian era.

Whigs

Another name for revolutionary Patriots.

Second Two-party System

Domination of national politics by two major political parties, such as the Whigs and Democrats during the 1830s and 1840s.

Democrats and Whigs

Jackson's arrogant behavior, especially his use of the veto, led many to regard him as "King Andrew I." Groups who opposed him organized a new political party, known as the Whig party, thus producing the country's second two-party system. Two acts—the Distribution Act (1836) and the Specie Circular—ultimately destabilized the nation's economy. Andrew Jackson's ally and vice president, Martin Van Buren, succeeded Jackson as president, but Jacksonian bank policies led to the financial Panic of 1837 and an economic depression. Van Buren responded by establishing the Independent Treasury Act (1840) to safeguard the nation's economy but offered no help for individuals in distress. The economic calamity ensured a Whig victory in the election of 1840.

Indian Removal Act (1830)

Law permitting the forced relocation of Indians to federal lands west of the Mississippi River in exchange for the land they occupied in the East and South.

Distribution Act (1836)

Law requiring the distribution of the federal budget surplus to the states, creating chaos among state banks that had become dependent on such federal funds.

Force Bill (1833)

Legislation, sparked by the nullification crisis in South Carolina, that authorized the president's use of the army to compel states to comply with federal law.

Bank War

Political struggle in the early 1830s between President Jackson and financier Nicholas Biddle over the renewing of the Second Bank's charter.

Independent Treasury Act (1840)

System created by President Martin Van Buren and approved by Congress in 1840 whereby the federal government moved its funds from favored state banks to the U.S. Treasury, whose financial transactions could only be in gold or silver coins or paper currency backed by gold or silver.

Tariff of Abominations (1828)

Tax on imported goods, including British cloth and clothing, that strengthened New England textile companies but hurt southern consumers, who experienced a decrease in British demand for raw cotton grown in the South

Jackson's Views and Policies

The Jacksonians sought to democratize the political process and expand economic opportunity for the "common man" (that is, "poor and humble" White men). As the representative of "the people," he expanded the role of the president in economic matters, reducing federal government spending and eliminating the powerful Second Bank of the United States. His Bank War painted the national bank as full of "vipers and thieves" and was hugely popular, but Jackson did not understand its long-term economic consequences. In addition, his views on limited government were not always reflected in his policies. He left the high taxes on imports from the Tariff of Abominations (1828) in place until opposition in the South created a national crisis.

Trail of Tears (1838-1839)

The Cherokees' eight-hundred mile journey (1838-1839) from the southern Appalachians to Indian Territory (in present-day Oklahoma); four thousand people died along the way.

Indian Removal Act of 1830

The Indian Removal Act authorized the relocation of eastern Indians to federal lands west of the Mississippi River. The Cherokees used the federal court system in Cherokee Nation v. Georgia and Worcester v. Georgia to try to block this relocation. Despite the Supreme Court's decisions in their favor, President Jackson forced them to move; the event and the route they took came to be called the Trail of Tears (1838-1839). By 1840, only a few Seminoles and Cherokees remained in remote areas of the Southeast.

Nullification Controversy

The concept of nullification, developed by South Carolina's John C. Calhoun, enabled a state to disavow a federal law. When a South Carolina convention nullified the Tariffs of 1828 and 1832, Jackson requested that Congress pass a Force Bill (1833) authorizing the U.S. Army to compel compliance with the tariffs. After South Carolina, under the threat of federal military force, accepted a compromise tariff put forth by Henry Clay, the state convention nullified the Force Bill. The crisis was over, with both sides claiming victory.

Nullification

The right claimed by some states to veto a federal law deemed unconstitutional. > became the ultimate weapon for those determined to protect states' rights against federal authority