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=Andrew Jackson=

Political Party: Democrat
Two terms in office: March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837 Vice president for term one: John C. Calhoun Vice president for term two: Martin Van Buren

Evaluation:
Many people were already for Andrew Jackson to become president after the alleged "corrupt bargain" in the election of 1824. He was a president that wanted things done his way. Even though he got things done, the people were not always for what his decision was. President Jackson deserves a letter grade of a B.

Jackson, having many different viewpoints of the former president John Quincy Adams, had many goals in mind while he was president. He wanted an internal tariff to raise money for the country. This money would go towards internal improvements in America. He wanted to have a system of roads and canals in America, making it easier for trade and travel. He viewed the Bank of American as a threat with to much power, so he eventually would veto the recharter bill for the bank. By abolishing the Bank of America, he wanted to give more power to the state and federal governments. Instead of having all of the power in one place, he would spread it out. He wanted to prevent the north and south from splitting. He said at a dinner one night "Our Federal Union-it must be preserved!"

Overall, Jackson's relationship with Congress was not very good. Because he was narrowminded, he vetoed many bills proposed by Congress. Even though he wanted internal improvements in the country, he vetoed the Maysville Road bill. If the bill would have been passed, construction would have begun on a federally funded highway in Kentucky. He found the bill unconstitutional because it benifted only one state and not the entire country. During the Peggy Eaton affair, Jackson and Secretary of State Martin Van Buren were the only two supporters of Secretary Eaton. He was said to have had an affair with Miss Eaton before she was officially divorced. Jackson demanded that the wives of Congressmen treat the now Mrs. Eaton with respect, but no one did. Only after Eaton resigned from office in 1831 did Congress respect Jackson. His relationship with Congress should have been good because of the spoils system. Under this system, people who supported Jackson and the Democratic party would be rewarded with government jobs. Jackson did not attend many Cabinet meetings; he was dissapointed in their behavior in the Peggy Eaton affair.

The action that had the most positive outcome during Jackson's presidency was the Tariff Act. He really wanted to prevent the north and south from splitting. In order to prevent this from happening, he signed a tariff in 1832, making in law. Not only did this keep the country together, it gave the president and the executive branch more power. South Carolina was not happy with the act, and declared it void in their state. Jackson threatened that not following federal laws was treason, and they would be severly punished if they did not pay the tariff. In 1833, a compromise tariff was passed that Jackson and the South agreed with. Congress supported him fully in his decision.

The action that had the most negative outcome during Jackson's presidency was his Indian Policy. He supported Georgia in its attempts to remove the Cherokee Tribe. He encouraged thousands of Indians to move west where they would be happier and be able to rule themselves forever. He fully supported the Indian Removal Act of 1830. This removed Indians from their original homelands and forced them to move west into present day Oklahoma. Some Indians tried to resist the law. In 1832, a Supreme Court Case called Worcester v. Georgia was debated. The outcome was that the laws of Georgia did not apply to the Cherokee nation, because they were their own community. The Indians should have been left alone and stayed where they were. Instead, Georgia and President Jackson disregarded the law and forced the Indians to move west. Jackson went not only against the Indians, he went against the Supreme Court ruling.

President Jackson influenced future presidents by leaving a well-organized Democratic Party when he left office. This party is still in use today, along with the Republican party. Many future presidents chose to run for the democratic party, because it became so much more popular with Jackson in charge of it. Also, he made the executive branch have more power in the country by vetoing many bills. He did what he wanted to when he wanted to. An example of this is the Indian Removal Act. Even thought the Supreme Court ruled moving Indians west against the law, Jackson still forced them out of their homeland. This was sending a message to everyone: the President has the most power, and can make whatever decisions he wants.

Overall, Jackson was a good president, but not a great one. He had many goals and he met many of them, but sometimes his narrowminedness got in the way of what was best for the country. He spead out power in the state and federal governments. He vetoed bills because they benifited only one state instead of the whole country. He wanted to keep the country together, and he did during his presidency. Because of this Jackson deserves a letter grade of a B.

Bibliography: Books: The Complete Book of United States Presidents Websites: [] []