3. 1829-1837 Jacksonian Democracy/ Democratic Republicans

Democratic-Republicans Come to Power

• 1801-1829 (28 years)

• These presidencies tried to reduce the power of the government but are not very successful, especially with John Marshall

  • Thomas Jefferson

    • Defeats john adams

    • 1st peaceful transition of power from 1 party to another

    • Jefferson gets reelected leading til 1809

    • In office: Jefferson cuts military spending and size

      • Reduced national debt 

      • Cut ALL internal taxes

      • Alien and Sedition Acts expire

  • James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams

    • Next 3 presidents are Democratic-Republicans, founders (Adams is son of a founder), and well educated, landowning men

    • They do not successfully scale back the “size and scope” of federal gov

      • 1819: McCulloch v. Maryland questions constitutionality of bank

Andrew Jackson overview

• 1829-1837 Jackson serves 2 terms (1st term painting in Trump’s oval office) 4 main issues

• Vice Prez = John C. Calhoun

• 1767-1845: born to poor farming family on North/South Carolina border

  • Became a lawyer and plantation owner in Tennessee

  • Oversaw decisive victories in the War of 1812: became a household name

  • Didnt go to college (apprentice thing)

• Believed the power of the common man was threatened by

  • 1. Industrial Revolution (replace farms w/ factories)

  • 2. Native Americans (violent skirmishes, need to expand agrarianism but they r in way inhabiting the land)

  • 3. Anti-Slavery Forces (rly these ppl r stoping agrarianism)

• Democrats now: argue for the wants/needs of average americans (starting w/ Jackson the common man expanded from white, southern, slaveholder, to also Western man

Jacksons Election

• Many states previously limited voting rights to whites, men, landowners

• 1840: 90% of adult white men (nonlandowners) are eligible to vote = more “common men” voting = “common prez”

Jeffersonian Democracy v Jacksonian

• Jeffersonian Democracy

  • A lot of power to states

  • Individual liberties for ppl

  • Prioritizing the voice of Southerners over northerners (poor over wealthy)

• Jacksonian democracy

  • power to common man (+ Prez)

  • prioritizing southerners

  • uses any means even if illegal to protect common man

1. The Creation of the Spoils System

• 1829 fires Civil Servants (nonpartisan tasks/job) in Washington DC and hiring ppl who helped w/ his campaign, friends, and party members (yes-men) “ppl in DC are out of touch and elite” “drain the swap -Trump”

2. The Indian Removal Act

• 1830: US Policy pre-Jackson -> considered native americans to be soverign states (seperate countries) therefore engaged using treaties

• Jackson viewed policy dumb bc 1- he's racist (we r superior to them) 2- they r surrounded by US therefore its silly to consider them their own state

  • Wants+Gets bill from Congress allowing him to remove Native Americans 

  • John Marshall strikes down law

• Worcester v. Georgia 1832: In response Cherokee file a lawsuit unconstitutional bc they are their own state therefore U.S. government does not have authority over them

• 1835: Jackson encourages Georgia to ignore treaty and signs removal treaty bc he has the power (military) to carry it out, most Cherokees rejected treaty but U.S. military moved the people under Jacksons orders which became known as the “Trail of Tears”

3. The Second Bank of the United States

• 1832 Bank comes up for Charter: Jackson vetos and removed federal deposits ->

  • transferred one secretary of the treasury and fired another to secure the deposits removals

• Bank = symbol of what ppl want for U.S. future: 

  • industry (pro-bank) vs. agrarianism (anti-bank)

• 1819: moving from money to paper or away from gold standard -> no longer tie dollars worth to equal amount of worth in gold -> value based of belief

  • Economic downfall happens at the same time (unrelated) but ppl think its related therefore bad

• Economic state from 1832-1913 bc there is no unified currency/value setter

4. Nullification Crisis

• 1832: Tarifs added -> taxes on goods being brought into the U.S. -> used to incentivize ppl to buy goods that we make not other countries cheaper good

  • South view this as a price increase bc they want to be able to buy cheapest option w/ free trade (cheap goods from other countries)

  • South doesn't have beneficial tax

• South Carolina calls on Calhoun’s disapproval of it and Nullification and says that if you don’t respect this we will leave the Union and create our own countries

• Jackson warned Nullification would lead to war and used military to enforce this

  • Everyone surprised (vice Calhoun + ppl) by his sudden support of federal gov but he is threatened by this bc everything he's down during presidency relies on federal power to protect common man

  • Congress proposed compromise tariff which South Carolina accepted and Jackson approved