Flaws of Jacksonian Democracy

Jacksonian Democrats viewed themselves as the guardians of the United States Constitution, political democracy, individual liberty, and equality of economic opportunity. However, the Jacksonian Democrats were in a catch 22. In order for them to protect the interests of the common man, they at times had to violate the very things for which they stood. By doing this, the Jacksonian Democrats stressed the importance of the power of the common man, at times by violating their own principles.

Andrew Jackson, seventh president of the United States and founder of the Democratic Party, was elected President in 1828, after he lost in the election of 1824 because of the Electoral College. He was a believer in true democracy, built a party that was representing what the people wanted and did everything he could to close the deep divisions between rich and poor. But he was not always correct in how he acted. In some ways, Andrew Jackson was like Thomas Jefferson: He never really liked the Bank of the United States. When it was time to renew the Bank’s charter, he sent a veto message saying that the Bank needed to be abolished. Jackson thought that it was not a good thing to have the national’s financial strength in a single institution, that the Bank only helped the rich people to become even richer, and that it had too much control over members of the Congress and favored the northeast over the southwest. Jackson was

In the span of 20 years, 42 states elected by the people, and 27 states elected by the legislature. (Document 1). The election of Jackson was considered a “revolution,” because of its peaceful transfer of power. This revolution was different from any other, because it was achieved by ballots rather than bullets. Jacksonians cried, “Shall the people rule?” and the answer was, “The people shall rule!” Andrew Jackson was so notable that people have come 500 miles to see him and think that the country is rescued from some dreadful danger. It is said Jackson’s victory accelerated the transfer of national power from the country-house to the farmhouse, from the East to the West, and from the snobs to the mobs. If Jackson was a hero of the gentleman farmer, he was surely a hero of the dirt farmer. Jackson was democratic because he granted all men equal rights, and believed that the common man is just as good as the wealthy. This is how he got all his support, most of which came from the common man. We must also consider that he was a common man who became successful as president. He disagreed with the wealthy, who tried to empower the common man/farmers, and was a large supporter of wester farmers, low tariffs, and pet banks, rather than a national bank. (Document 2).

Jackson’s version of democracy was in fact a democracy. He was not a very wealthy man, he owned a home and some land. Which was more than could be said about most Americans at the time. About ten percent of the Americans living there at that time owned enough land to vote. There was a law, stating that only white males with a good portion of land could vote in the presidential election. Andrew Jackson thought this system was so unfair, he created a new way to govern the citizens of the newly formed United States.

Did Andrew Jackson support the people and their rights? Andrew Jackson was the seventh president of the United States. He vetoed the National Bank because he said that it only supported the rich and was unconstitutional. Also Andrew Jackson set a land territory west of the Mississippi River for the Indian tribes and adopted a little Native American boy who was left from his tribe. How democratic was Andrew Jackson? Democracy is a form of government where the people have a right to assist in the law making process. Andrew Jackson was democratic in many political, economic, and geographic ways.

Jacksonian Democracy describes the time from when Andrew Jackson became the seventh president of the United States in 1829 till the end of his second term in 1837 (Shi and Tindall, 319). He was the first president that didn’t come from a prominent colonial family. His “common man” background lead him to being a popular political figure among the common people. This lead to him and his supporters forming America’s democratic party. A democracy is a system of government where the people or citizens exercise power directly or elect representatives from among themselves to form a governing body. Andrew Jackson and his supporters greatly supported the idea of democracy. They wanted the common people of America to have more power when it came to

The Jacksonian Democrats were very important in the revolutions in political democracy that took place during this period. During this period universal white male suffrage took place and was the first step towards the revolution of the common man in politics. Also, Jackson's acceptance and support of the two-party system helped create a more democratic America in which people with similar views could unite in their support of a singular candidate. Many "working men" of this time period had felt they had been taken advantage of and misrepresented by tyrannical aristocrats who treated them poorly (A). Jackson used this to his advantage with emotionalized speeches exploiting class differences. However, it should be said that during this time period the amount of voters increased dramatically which means that more Americans were involved in American politics (D). Jackson's use of the "Kitchen Cabinet" kept his knowledge of critics and the wants and needs of the people up

The Jacksonian democracy of the 1820s-1830s is often associated with an expansion of the political influence, economic opportunities, and social equality available to “the common man,” a concept of the masses which President Andrew Jackson and his newly founded Democratic party came to represent. The new administration certainly saw gains for the majority; namely, public participation in government increased to unprecedented levels, and several economic decisions were made to favor the people over monopolies. Beginning with their exaggerated portrayal of the “corrupt” 1824 election however, the Jacksonian democrats also left a legacy of substantial miscalculations

In addition to creating a more democratic country, Jackson also tried to establish equal economic opportunity for the people of America. The best example of this is the vetoing of the charter of the Bank of the United States. The bank was a huge monopoly. It was ran by aristocrats, most of which were from England. Nicholas Biddle, who was the president of the bank, often used funds from the bank to lend money to the members of Congress, thus wining their support.

Jacksonian's viewed themselves as guardians of the constitution, political democracy, individual liberties, and equality of economic opportunity. Many of his followers from that time tended to agree but a lot of people today look back and disagree with each of these assumptions. I believe that he was a keeper of the constitution and political democracy. Depending upon your outlook, Jackson was a guardian of individual liberties, even with his oppression of African American slaves, Indians, and women. His equality of economic opportunity was more towards the common man that the elite but gave that common man a larger chance for equality with the elites without allowing the elites a greater chance to increase their wealth.

     During the administration of Andrew Jackson, the United States was a nation of change both politically and socially. American society was a society of opportunity. Americans felt that, given a chance, they could make a better life for themselves. This was the era of the common people, the era of democracy. Andrew Jackson appealed to the American people because he stood for values many regarded with favor. However democratic Jackson may seem, he was more tyrant-like than any of his predecessors. His major offerings to the nation included majority rule and a popular presidency, however offered no benefits to women, African Americans, nor Native Americans. Jacksonian Democracy was

In addition to creating a more democratic country, Jackson also tried to establish equal economic opportunity for the people of America. The best example of this is the vetoing of the charter of the Bank of the United States. The bank was a huge monopoly. It was ran by aristocrats, most of which were from England. Nicholas Biddle, who was the president of the bank, often used funds from the bank to lend money to the members of Congress, thus wining their support.

Although the “Age of Jackson” wasn’t a time era, which brought forth a great political, social, or economic freedom and equality to the U.S., it did in fact put our country through a metamorphosis in our political lives of the nation. The start of a new presidency (Jackson’s presidency) was accompanied by huge numbers of Hickoryites (Jacksonian supporters) and official hopefuls. Many of these hopefuls were granted their desire of holding office, which is one of the changes brought into Washington by Andrew Jackson.

In both the years leading up to Andrew Jackson’s time in office and the years following it, we have never had a president quite like Jackson. With his victory in the Election of 1828, the Age of Jackson began. Supporters of the president were skilled at emotionalizing issues and rallying the support of the South and the West. Jackson claimed to be a “common man” and a guardian of Democracy, working to protect individual freedoms. However, he made a lot of enemies along the way, including the Nationalist Republicans, the Whigs, and the Anti-Masons. Jackson acted more like a dictator and didn’t usually listen to the people, which blatantly went against one of the most important values of democracy. In fact, Jackson wasn’t Democratic at all, as

     Jacksonian (Democracy, Society, etc.) is a term used to describe reform during the time of Andrew Jackson’s Presidency. Specifically Jacksonian Democracy refers to “the general extension of democracy that characterized U.S. politics from 1824 to 1828.” Jacksonian Democracy and its support came primarily from the lower classes as a rebellion of sorts apposing the aristocracy. Even though it stressed equality, it was pro-slavery and anti-Indian (not unlike Andrew Jackson). Also there was change in both the political parties and the social reforms. Jackson was seen as a westerner (even though he was from Tennessee) and a president of the common man. This we can see when he married women