The Second Party: Periodization Between 1828 To 1854

The Second American Party System was between the Democrats and the Whigs. The Whigs were organized to oppose Andrew Jackson in the early 1830s. The Whigs were the heir to Federalism, favoring a strong national government in the economy like the American System and supported active social reform. Its power was in the North and Old Northwest, voters who would benefit from increased commercialization. The Whigs wanted to

In the two-party system, supporters of Jackson were Democrats and supporters of his rival, Henry Clay, were the Whigs. The Democratic Party resembled the old Republican party of Jefferson, while the Whigs represented the Federalist party of Hamilton.

Despite the fact the founding fathers advised contrary to the establishment of political factions as the Constitution withstood the ratification process, a rift amongst men in President George Washington’s cabinet instituted the move toward the conception of political party. During the time period between 1791 and 1833, a two-party system had begun that demonstrated the philosophy of the Federalists and Democratic-Republicans. Although these two political groups were unyielding in their original ideas and beliefs, both had to change a few of their initial standpoints on numerous topics as they dealt with the truth of the government.

“In spite of the founders’ fears, two major-political factions – the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists were formed even before the Constitution was ratified.” Sidlow, 2015, P 143) Federalists wanted stronger national government and Anti-Federalist (Jefferson Republicans) wanted states’ rights and feared government could become too powerful. In the election of 1796 was the first time candidates from different political party systems held strongly opposed party principles and this time period defined political life as we know it. For the next twenty years the Jefferson Republicans dominated American Politics. In the 1820’s the Jefferson Republicans split into two groups, supporters of Andrews Jackson called their party the Democrats, and the other group called themselves the National Republican Party (Whig Party). During the 1840’s and 1850’s Democrats and Whigs competed for the White House and the two party system fully emerged

This would help to stabilize the nation’s economy. The First Bank of the United State was established, allowing the regulation of credit and banking facilities nationwide. However, this bank did not have complete support and in 1811 when the bank’s charter was up for renewal, it was not approved by the Senate and the First Bank of the United States was closed. The war of 1812 highlighted that without a central bank, the Treasury Department struggled to finance the war. It was because of this struggle that in 1816, the Second Bank of the United States was established. Over the next twenty years, the Second Bank reduced the national debt, stabilized exchange rates and aided in national economic growth. As with its predecessor, the Second Bank of the United States closed at the end of its 20-year charter in 1836 due to lack of support in the Senate. Another Federal bank, the Federal Reserve, would not be established until 1913. It is with this third establishment of a national bank that economists recognized that Hamilton’s design was sound. The Federal Reserve continues to regulate the U.S. banking system

Jackson’s reelection convinced him that his opposition to the bank won all of the national support. The Second Bank was established in 1816, as a success from the First Bank of the United States, whose charter was permitted to expire in 1811. The name “The Bank War” was given to the campaign, started by President Andrew Jackson in 1833, to destroy the Second Bank of the United States, this was the start to a very hateful Bank War.

C). This Act completely cut off commerce with foreign nations until the British and the French repealed their trading restrictions on neutral shippers. As a result the American export trade and its profits dried up. Many people deemed this Act unconstitutional; the constitution only grants congress the power to regulate commerce, it does not however state that they have the power to completely cut it off. This by itself contradicts everything Jefferson stood up for. Albert Gallatin, one of the best financial minds in the Republican Party, convinced Jefferson that the Bank of the U.S. was essential for financial stability. Although the creation of the Bank of the U.S. reduced the nation’s debt from 83 million in 1800 to 57 million by 1809 , the creation in its self shows a great deal of broad constructionism. Although the bank was a reasonable means of carrying out powers related to taxation and the borrowing of funds, nowhere in the constitution does it state that congress has the power to charter a bank. John Randolph, a Republican congressman from Virginia, claimed that “this government (Jeffersonian) created and gave power to congress to regulate commerce and equalize duties in the whole of the U.S, and not to lay a duty but with a steady eye to revenue”. What John Randolph was trying to say was that

This eliminated the Federalist party so that there would just be the Republicans. Later, the Democratic party was introduced into the picture. The Second National Bank was also established. This happened in 1816 in order to assure more stability in the funds of the United States. As you can see, there were many positive things that came out of the Era of Good Feelings.

The First Party System refers to a period between 1792 and the 1820’s when the American political system was divided into two parties. Both parties, the Federalist Party, and the Democratic-Republican Party, wanted control of the Congress, the presidency, and the states. The parties were the result of the differences between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson on how to solve various national problems such as the economic crisis that was threatening the nation at the time (Dickerson, 2004). However, the roots of these political parties and concerns emerged during the constitution ratification process. On one hand, the Federalists supported the constitution while, on the other hand, the Antifederalists (Democratic-Republican) did not support it due to key issues that had not been considered in the new constitution (rAndon HersHey & Beck, 2015).

The Jacksonian Democratic Party and the Whig Party each, exemplified different beliefs on the role of the federal government in the economy and towards westward expansion in the 1830s and 1840s. However, the Jacksonian, laissez faire supporting Democrats and the economic nationalistic Whig party shared almost no beliefs except for the removal of American Indians in the areas their supporters wished to settle. The lack of similarities is because the Whigs formed their own party to oppose President Jackson’s strong-armed leadership style and policies which earned him the nickname “King Andrew.” The Jacksonian Democratic Party evolved out of the Democratic-Republican Party in the early 1800s, the core of its membership was composed of farmers, immigrants, and white Southerners. The Whigs formed in 1834 and lasted for 20 years, they were the major political party that opposed Andrew Jackson. The Whigs were created based upon the Federalist beliefs in a strong federal government and adopted many Federalist and National Republican policy ideas, including federal funding for internal improvements, a central bank, and high tariffs to protect the growth of manufacturing enterprises. Overall, the Jacksonian Democratic agrarian Party and the industrialization supporting Whig Party had different beliefs toward the role of the federal government in the economy and towards westward expansion.

The Federalists sought a formidable federal government supporting merchants and industry, building a market-based nation. The Democratic-Republicans favored a diluted federal government consenting to the protection of the “natural rights” and slavery. Two defining issues, finance, and foreign policy would separate and create the first two-party approach to governing. More specifically, there were three complications muddying the waters for the two parties. Honoring all debts, including state debts and the apprehension of establishing a national bank was seen to be unfair and biased.

The first two political parties that were formed in the United States were the federalist and the anti-federalist. The federalist consisted of the northern population, while the anti-federalist were in the south. One of the leaders of the federalist was Alexander Hamilton, with the power that he held and the power of the other federalist, they were able to gain control of the government for the first 10 years. The Democratic-Republic party took shape with Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, until 1828 when the name Republican was dropped from the name of the party which lead to the creation of the Democratic Party. Slavery was a very important issue for the United States government during those years, the Whig Party was then formed in order to stop the spreading of slavery into the western territories. The Whig Party came to an end as the Kansas-Nebraska bill of 1854 gave permission to the state to decide if they would be a free or slave state. The anti-slavery Whigs started to gather again in

As the north and south began to separate after the Era of Good Feelings (1815-1825), the Second American Party System was established. This system consisted of two distinct parties, the Democrats and their opponents, who were known as Whigs for the most part. The goal of these two parties was to create a common thought process between the north and the south. Three of the issues prominent in their campaigns to gather votes in these two regions were government, economy, and slavery. Using these topics as foundations, the members of both parties of the Second American Party System aimed establish harmony between the north and south.

The major parties since early 1830s in the United States of America were the Democratic Party, organized by Andrew Jackson, and the Whig Party, assembled by Henry Clay from the National Republicans and in opposition to Andrew Jackson.

A political party is a group of people who seek to win elections and hold public office in order to shape government policy and programs. George Washington warned the nation against creating political parties in his famous “Farewell Address”. He feared political parties would divide the country and weaken support of the Constitution (Doc 4). The first major political parties, the Federalists and the Republicans, were created during the term of President George Washington. Despite President Washington’s warning, the rise of the two political parties, in the years after his term was inevitable. The Federalists were in favor of a strong central government, while the anti-federalists opposed most their ideas. Over time, the gradual development