How Democratic Was Andrew Jackson: Defining Jackson's Presidency

Andrew Jackson became prominent in national politics in the year 1812 as a major general when he led American troops to several successful battles, especially the Battle of New Orleans. Andrew Jackson built his prominence as a major general before being elected as the seventh president of the United States in 1829. During his presidency, Andrew Jackson is remembered as one of the most influential presidents whose era was marked with greater democracy and whose administration prompted noteworthy political changes for the common man.

In his first address to the congress, Jackson laid out his goals as follows; first rotation of government jobs, eliminating the national debt, nullifying the tariffs, removal of the Indians occupants at the west Mississippi, and reforming the second bank of the US. His goals appeared too simple tasks at the surface when he read them out to the national congress (Meacham, p.87). However, the issues turned out to be more complex and fuller of pitfalls during attempts to implement them. His plan for eliminating the national debt was to ensure the surplus budget was distributed to various states to promote business growth countrywide. The issue of tariffs specifically posed a greater challenge than anticipated forcing him to handle it with a lot of delicacies. The tariff was passed by his supporters in the year 1828 and caused a great rift between the northerners and southerners. The northerners supported the tariff as a necessity to protect their manufacturing while the southerners opposed it as being an unfair subsidy that only benefited the northerners at their expense. Jackson was at crossroads at failed to address the issue directly but instead referred it to the congress (Latner, p.345). However, the issue escalated into a crisis when the southerners threatened secession, passed the Ordinance of Nullification, and declared the 1828 and 1832 bill null and void. Jackson responded to solve this crisis by signing a force bill and using the military to enforce the tariff. This enforcement gradually reduced the resistance from southerners, and the crisis eventually resolved by Compromise Tariff with no further need for force bill.

When Andrew Jackson took office as the president, his first plan was to dismantle the patronage system. The patronage system that had been in place in the previous administration involved appointing officials to government positions based on their loyalty to party or as a reward for supporting the president during campaigns (Remini, p.253). Andrew Jackson saw this system as a loophole to corruption and opening up the government to people who might be incompetent. He supported an alternative system that grants tenure to civil employees and advocated for rotation of jobs so that no one would hold an office forever.