Compare And Contrast Andrew Jackson And Henry Clay

Andrew Jackson was seen as a common man the voice of the people by some. By others he was King Andrew, trampling the constitution and instigating tyranny. Jackson’s presidency impacted democracy, through his use of the veto power, and his claim of Clay creating a “corrupt bargain”, which is not a turning point for a rise in democracy despite him giving white male suffrage.

Andrew Jackson’s presidency is one of the more debated presidencies in American history. Many see him as a hero while others view him as opposite. Depending on which history book is read, portrayals of him are sometimes of “the common man,” who attacked a political system that ignored the will of the common citizens. Other texts would portray Jackson as tyrant, one who disrespected many of the institutions outlined in the Constitution. He is usually celebrated by some because he defended the rights of the common people. Others, however, look down upon his removal of the Native Americans, a movement known as the Trail of Tears. Both of these conclusions are correct in the judgement of Jackson’s presidency. Many events that occurred while he was in office helped the development of our nation while at the same time led up to the events prior to the Civil War.

Andrew Jackson, being a tyrant, abused his power in his time of presidency.   He was the 7th president, but before Jackson’s presidency, he had no political experience. One of the only things that really qualified him was the hardships he went through when he was younger. His father had died while Jackson was young and Jackson received the reputation as a “self-made man”, or an independent man.

Born in poverty, Andrew Jackson had become a wealthy Tennessee lawyer and rising young politician by 1812. When war broke out between the United States and Britain, his leadership in that conflict earned Jackson national fame as a military hero and he would become America’s most influential and polarizing political figure during the 1820’s and 1830’s. The year is 1763 in Tennessee and Washington D.C. during the life of Andrew Jackson. As he lived, Mr. Jackson did some foolish things and some impacting things. An example of three of the foolish things that Mr. Jackson did are the following:

The era of Andrew Jackson which was nicknames the era of the “common man” certainly lived up to its name. As the seventh President of the United States, Jackson had a major effect on the life of the common man, in such a way that the life of the common man would never be the same again. Jackson’s aim, after the manner in which he was defeated in the Presidential Election of 1824, despite receiving more popular votes than John Quincy Adams who took on the office, was to reduce the power and the authority of the elite. When he came into power after the 1828 election Jackson began to carry out his proposals.

Andrew Jackson is the epitome of a villain. If portrayed in a movie Jackson would be seen as the cruel murderous man who everyone couldn’t help but dislike, but somehow he still managed to be on the twenty dollar bill. Jackson was born into a poor family in 1767. From there on Jackson was a rebellious teen who happened to be imprisoned at the age of thirteen. Once Jackson grew up he experienced a great number of occupations from a lawyer, to a general, he finally chose to enter the world of politics. To become president Jackson had to exploit his opponents, and bribe his supporters by allowing them to maintain government positions. Once Jackson became president he exceeded his presidential powers through unconstitutional means. Andrew Jackson was a lying, unconstitutional, racist murderer who covered up his evil deeds by stating everything he did was for the well-being of the United States.

The time has come to make a judgement of the great Andrew Jackson, the 7th president of the United States from 1829~1837. Although some people didn’t like Jackson very well due to very few of his decisions, he made many good decisions during his presidency. Andrew Jackson should be remembered as a hero of the common man due to his unifying leadership, generous approach of governing, and concern for economic equality. The first reason that Andrew Jackson should be remembered as a hero is because of his unifying leadership.

In the journal article “ Andrew Jackson versus the Historians”, author Charles G. Sellers explained the various interpretations of Jackson, from the viewpoint of Whig historians and Progressive Historians. These interpretations were based on the policies of Jackson. The Whig historians viewed the former president in a negative way. They considered him arrogant, ignorant, and not fit for being president. Sellers pointed out that it was not just because of “Jackson’s personality…nor was it the general policies he pursued as president” In fact, many of them approved of some of Jackson’s policies. It was due to the fact that many of these historians came from wealthy northern families or those in the middle class. Their families had control over politics before the Jacksonian period. When Jackson became president

Andrew Jackson was a wealthy slave owner and infamous Indian killer. Proponents of Jackson claim he broke up some networks of privilege among his rivals. That may be true — but it also entrenched amateurism in civil service and a new system of patronage politics (with their own unearned privileges) which would define American government for several generations. "If a single drop of blood shall be shed there in opposition to the laws of the United States, I will hang the first man I can lay my hand on engaged in such treasonable conduct, upon the first tree I can

Andrew Jackson was said to be a divergent president in many ways, especially for his unique background compared to the wealthy ones of the previous presidents. He started off as an orphan and made his way up to becoming a general in the military, then became a frontier and started working in office soon later. Jackson’s presidency was held during an age known as the Age of the Common Man where he was determined to always do what was best for the common people and protect them from the powers of the rich and the privileged. With his success as a populist in his own Jacksonian Democracy, Jackson was able to seduce the American people but frighten the political and economic elite. Although Jackson had good intentions with what he wanted to accomplish

Following the legacy of Alexander Hamilton, Clay was a strong supporter of the Bank of the United States, which was a part of his American system. Clay saw the bank as a necessity for economic growth in America. However, when the bank was up for re-charter in 1832, Andrew Jackson vetoed the bill. In his well-written veto Jackson, explained his decision to veto the bill citing it unconstitutional. Jackson believed “if the government would stop creating inequality by giving artificial stimulation to the engines of the Market Revolution…men would be left in a state of modest but natural inequality” .

Today, Andrew Jackson is known far and wide in the United States as having been a large advocate of democracy. He proclaimed himself a Democrat, and while running for president, he campaigned that he would change the system to help directly represent the people instead of through representatives. Being a Democrat running against a Republican, most people would think that Andrew Jackson would be the most anti-republican person ever. However, that was not entirely the case. Jackson was neither anti-republican nor the most Republican person one can imagine.

Andrew Jackson believed that he was a guardian of the Constitution .He was fixing the faulty interpretation of the constitution put forth by his fellow congress men. Jackson saw the banks as “monopoly of foreign and domestic exchange” he believed the wealthy people were using the banks to line their pockets with more money. One of Jackson’s opponents, Daniel Webster of Mass. . He believed that Jackson had no true facts on his assessment, in fact he saw the veto as alarming. In westers view, Jackson was using the constitutional argument to support his own grab for power.

The founders of the United States did their best to create a government that would not allow erroneous decisions to greatly harm the nation. They set a percent of presidents being politically sound and well-known; their beliefs for how the nation should be handled were essential to their campaign. President Andrew Jackson, however, did not follow this system, instead winning primarily by his personality and popularity amongst the common American. While his actions in office often appeared to be for the people, most had a hidden selfish side to them that he easily covered up. With the election of 1828, Jackson radically changed American politics, focusing them more on public appearance and personal character than on intelligence and political views, making personality just as, if not more important than the actual politics of a political term.

Andrew Jackson during his time was considered a very patriotic politician he hated the rich, he hated the Indian, and loved the idea of slavery. It has been said that he grew up not educated and had a bad up bring but still managed to get to a high political suture. Jackson at one point was general and had a very decorated portfolio, which made sense he would become president, Andrew was most well know for “The Battle of New Orleans” where Andrew Jackson, prevented the British Army and General Edward Pakenham, from seizing New Orleans nearing the end of that war.