How Democratic Was Andrew Jackson? Andrew Jackson the democrat? More like Andrew Jackson the DEMONcrat! Andrew Jackson is considered to be one of the most famous presidents in American history because of his “democratic” views. The era of the “common man” marked the beginning for American democracy where ordinary people had a say in the government. To Jackson, democracy meant that all agencies of the government, including the congress, the president, National Bank, and Supreme Court must listen and follow to the wishes of the people. However, Jackson still had certain ideas about who were included in the people, and opposers of Jackson claimed he was more autocratic than a democratically elected president. This raises the question; how
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Opposers of Jackson believed he ignored the separation of powers among the three branches of government. A cartoon that appeared in the presidential election of 1832 depicted Jackson as “King Andrew The First” with veto power in his hand while stepping on the Constitution and National Bank and Internal Improvements bill. Clearly, Jackson acted without congressional approval and felt more superior than the Constitution. Instead of letting the people make decisions, Jackson holds ultimate authority and abuses the veto power. His autocratic views also led to a resentful response from Daniel Webster. Webster’s reply to Jackson’s Bank veto message states, “(President Jackson’s message) …show more content…
This action caused the Indians to suffer, and many of them died along the way. Jackson’s message to congress regarding the Indian removal explained that many Indian tribes were becoming extinct and asked congress to consider setting aside territory west of the Mississippi specially for the Indians (Doc. J). This proposal was used to solely benefit the eastern territory to benefit farmers and working men by opening up lands. Jackson benefitted himself economically at a cost, which was removing the Indians from the territory without their consent, proving his egotistical behavior. Correspondingly, responses from the Cherokee tribe verified Jackson’s injustice. A cherokee Indian from the “Memorial of the Cherokee Nation,” describes the western land as badly supplied with food and water, unfamiliar cultures, and “wish to die” on this soil (Doc. K). Jackson forced the Indians to surrender their land and failed to provide any support in terms of food and other necessities for their westward migration. Because of the Indian’s utmost disenchantment, it is possible that they took their case to the Supreme Court. However, Jackson could have ignored that decision since he already had a majority vote in Congress to be condemned and impeached. Conjointly, Native Americans were gathered into similar places in the west. A map created from various sources presents the five tribes
Opposers of Jackson believed he ignored the separation of powers among the three branches of government. A cartoon that appeared in the presidential election of 1832 depicted Jackson as “King Andrew The First” with veto power in his hand while stepping on the Constitution and National Bank and Internal Improvements bill. Clearly, Jackson acted without congressional approval and felt more superior than the Constitution. Instead of letting the people make decisions, Jackson holds ultimate authority and abuses the veto power. His autocratic views also led to a resentful response from Daniel Webster. Webster’s reply to Jackson’s Bank veto message states, “(President Jackson’s message) …show more content…
This action caused the Indians to suffer, and many of them died along the way. Jackson’s message to congress regarding the Indian removal explained that many Indian tribes were becoming extinct and asked congress to consider setting aside territory west of the Mississippi specially for the Indians (Doc. J). This proposal was used to solely benefit the eastern territory to benefit farmers and working men by opening up lands. Jackson benefitted himself economically at a cost, which was removing the Indians from the territory without their consent, proving his egotistical behavior. Correspondingly, responses from the Cherokee tribe verified Jackson’s injustice. A cherokee Indian from the “Memorial of the Cherokee Nation,” describes the western land as badly supplied with food and water, unfamiliar cultures, and “wish to die” on this soil (Doc. K). Jackson forced the Indians to surrender their land and failed to provide any support in terms of food and other necessities for their westward migration. Because of the Indian’s utmost disenchantment, it is possible that they took their case to the Supreme Court. However, Jackson could have ignored that decision since he already had a majority vote in Congress to be condemned and impeached. Conjointly, Native Americans were gathered into similar places in the west. A map created from various sources presents the five tribes