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Era Of Good Feelings Dbq Analysis

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When America gained its independence and finished formulating its government, the nation found itself split into two factions: Democratic-Republicans and Federalists. These two parties battled for control of the country until the dissolution of the Federalist party after the War of 1812. This led to the Era of Good Feelings, in which America’s government operated for the first time under a one-party system, but the Era came to an end with the Election of 1824, where the party split in two in support of two opposing candidates. The new National Republican party, later evolving into the Whig party, formed around Henry Clay and John Quincy Adams, while the Democratic party formed in support of Andrew Jackson. After J.Q.A. won the 1824 election, …show more content…

During his campaign, the “common man” was a poor, uneducated farmer who was disillusioned with the federal government, and Andrew Jackson seemed to personify everything that the previous Presidents were not. Both the second president to be almost completely uneducated as well as the first president from the West, he grew up on the frontier, and his policies reflected that. Aligning himself with the belief that Native American land should be open for settlement, he displayed the mindset of many poor farmers out West. Thus, he passed the Indian Removal Act, which forced the first peoples even farther from their homelands, to the delight of Americans that were looking for new farmland on the frontier. He also hated the national bank, which he viewed as the primary way that rich people in the East were siphoning money from the …show more content…

In addition, despite insisting that he was a champion of the people, he consistently attempted to increase his executive power over the other two branches of the government. He rejected Congress, the direct representation of our citizens, saying that they did not truly represent the people. He imposed unprecedented tariffs and attempted to invade states when they protested, despite previously campaigning for states’ rights. In addition, although the people on his campaign did an amazing job painting him as a simple-minded poor frontiersman, Jackson was actually one of the richest men in America at the

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