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Political And Social Beliefs Of Thomas Jefferson And Andrew Jackson

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Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson both had distinctive, memorable presidencies that changed the political and social landscape of America, but they are remembered particularly for being champions of common men. Unlike their political opponents and the presidents before them, they believed to some extent that all men could participate in the government and reflected these beliefs in their policies. Although both Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson worked to improve the lives and representation of common people, Jackson has the better claim to these titles due to his beliefs that all men should participate in the government and his commitment to universal white male suffrage. However, neither Jackson nor Jefferson showed much regard for common people who were not white males, and therefore neither represented the interests of common citizens nearly as well as they claimed to.
To determine whether Thomas Jefferson or Andrew Jackson was a better representative of the “common man”, it is crucial to understand each president’s views on humanity. Jefferson, who was himself a member of the well-educated, refined elite, believed that all humans, regardless of their social status, had a moral compass and could therefore be trusted with some political decisions. However, he didn’t believe that all people were equal in intellect; he thought that some individuals were born with superior intellect and virtue, and that those people should be the ones in charge of political decisions. In other words, Jefferson believed that a person’s intelligence and capability should determine whether they should have a hand in political decisions. Conversely, Jackson told the country that government should be composed of all people, regardless of background or social class. He once wrote that “The people are the government, administering it by their agents; they are the government, the sovereign power.” Based on the two men’s stances on humanity and its role in the government, Andrew Jackson appears to be the better representative of the common man.
Just as important as the ideas each man had on humanity are the ways these ideas manifested during their Presidential terms. How did each man try to better the lives of common men through

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