Issues that Challenged Old Hickory
The Corrupt Bargain
The Candidates Andrew Jackson- Democrat John Quincy Adams- Whig Henry Clay- Whig William Crawford- Democrat Jackson won the popular vote, but no candidate won the electoral vote.
The vote went to the House of Representatives who picked from the top three- Jackson, Adams, and Crawford. Clay used his position as Speaker of the House to persuade representatives to vote for Adams, who won. Who will you vote for? Adams!
Adams appointed Clay Secretary of State. Jackson called the election a Corrupt Bargain. Why did he feel this was a Corrupt Bargain? Secretary of State Henry Clay
John Quincy Adams and Andrew Jackson faced each other again in the 1828 election. Jackson won by a landslide. To the victor belongs the spoils!
Spoils - benefits gained by the winner
After taking office, Jackson fires many Federalist officials. OUT!!! He gave their jobs to his loyal supporters. The Spoils System is giving political jobs to loyal supporters.
The Kitchen Cabinet was Jackson s unofficial advisors consisting of the press, democratic leaders, loyal supporters and friends. They met informally in the White House kitchen to discuss politics and give Jackson advice.
They were known as a rough group.
Four Big Issues A. There are four big issues that defined Jackson s presidency: 1. Tariff of Abominations 2. The Bank Crisis 3. The Nullification Crisis 4. Indian Removal
The Tariff of Abominations A. One of the first challenges Jackson faced as president was a growing regional conflict over tariffs. B. Northern manufacturers wanted high tariffs to protect their new industries from foreign competition (particularly GB). C. The South had little industry to protect. Their economy relied on agriculture. High tariffs would anger some of their trading partners, so they wanted a low tariff. D. Westerners were divided.
Nullification Crisis A. A high tariff was passed in 1828. Southerners called it the Tariff of Abominations (abomination= something hated). B. Vice President Calhoun led the opposition of the tariff. He wrote a statement in favor of states rights. His statement said that states had the right to nullify, or cancel, any federal law they considered unconstitutional.
C. This dispute became known as the Nullification Crisis. Calhoun continued to argue that states had the right to rebel if they felt their rights had been violated. Daniel Webster disagreed saying, Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable! D. South Carolina (Calhoun s home state) tested the nullification theory when a new tariff was passed in 1832. The state legislature declared the tariffs of 1828 and 1832 null and void.
E. Jackson was strongly against nullification. Because of their difference, Calhoun resigned as VP. F. Jackson said he would send U.S. troops to South Carolina to enforce federal laws. South Carolina officials said they would withdraw from the Union if this happened.
G. Henry Clay stepped in and proposed a compromise: 1. Congress will lower the tariff over time. 2. The President has the right to use force to enforce a federal law. H. Both sides agreed to the compromise, but neither side trusted the other.
The Bank Crisis A. Jackson was opposed to the Second Bank of the U.S. which Congress had founded in 1816. B. Many states also opposed the Bank and had taken action against it. C. Maryland had passed laws that taxed branches of the national bank. James McCulloch, a cashier of the Bank in Maryland, refused to pay this tax. D. The state took him to court and the resulting case, McCulloch vs. Maryland, went all the way to the Supreme Court.
E. The Court made two important rulings in this case- 1. They supported the Bank s constitutionality. The elastic clause of the Constitution allowed Congress to establish the Bank. 2. The Court also decided that federal law was superior to state lawan idea that challenged the idea of states rights. Therefore, Maryland could not tax or interfere with the Bank.
F. Nicholas Biddle, the Bank s director, decided to make the Bank a presidential issue in 1832. G. The Bank s charter was up in 1836, but Biddle decided to push it up to 1832. H. Jackson campaigned against the renewal of the Bank s charter. He promised he would kill any legislation that crossed his desk that would renew the Bank.
I. Congress passed the Bank s charter and Jackson lived up to his promise by vetoing the bill. J. Jackson also weakened the Bank s power by depositing federal funds in state banks (pet banks) instead of the Bank. K. These pet banks used the federal funds to offer credit to people wanting to buy land. While this policy promoted expansion, it also led to inflation. L. Jackson tried to combat the inflation by ordering Americans to use only gold and silver to buy land, not paper money. This didn t help the inflation, but it did lower the national debt.
In a desire to attract more white settlers, Georgia began moving Native Americans west. One Way Jackson believed he did not have the power as president to interfere with Georgia s rights and stop the removal.
Jackson pushed the Indian Removal Act through Congress which gave the president power to move Native Americans west of the Mississippi.
But the Cherokee nation refused to move and took their case to the Supreme Court. In Worcester v. Georgia, the Court ruled in favor of the Cherokees. However, President Jackson refused to enforce the Court s ruling.
Many Native Americans, mostly Cherokee, were forced to move. Besides losing their homeland, many Native Americans died along the way.
This forced removal and journey west became know as the Trail of Tears. Some groups, such as the Seminoles of Florida, resisted.