Mark+C.+-+AJ+-+SP10


 * //__ [[image:andrewjackson.jpg width="253" height="251"]]

Andrew Jackson __//** //Born// // March 15, 1767 – Died// // June 8, 1845 // //Political Party –// // Democrat // //Terms in Office// //–// // (2) // // March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837 // //Vice Presidents//// – John C. Calhoun (1829–1832) // // None (1832–1833) // // Marten Van Buren (1833–1837) //

President Jackson was the first President to be voted into office while also gaining the popular vote. At the start of his terms, all looked fine and dandy and he did some really good things. This was a short lived period though and everything fell with the economy. The Jackson Presidency deserves the letter grade of a C- because most of his presidency was affected by the economic crash of 1837.

Jackson’s had a couple goals during his Presidency. Two of the main goals were to keep expanding into the western frontier and to remove the Bank of the United States. The goal of expansion was accomplished although it didn’t take a lot of effort on his part. The expansion was inevitable but he did help out with his Indian removal policies. These policies removed tribes from large tracts of land so that the Americans could take the land to settle. The Indians were moved way west as to not come in contact with any Americans. This Indian journey across the country was a very sad episode that was later called the Trail of Tears. The other goal was the removal of the Bank which was also accomplished. Madison had reinstated it but Jackson wanted it gone. He wanted this because he supported a more agricultural economy. Jackson succeeded by vetoing the banks re-charter in 1832.

Jackson got along well with congress for the most part. He did have the advantage in congress with supporters throughout most of his presidency. This meant that he was able to pass a lot of legislation. One piece of legislation that he passed was the Indian Removal act. This had a lot of support in congress because it helped everyone in the country to gain new lands and opportunities. The other thing that he did was Veto the new charter for the Bank of the United States. Not everyone in congress agreed with him and many people were disappointed with this decision.

Two major aspects of Jackson’s presidency had positive outcomes for the Americans, at least for a little while. The first was the fact that in the first few years of his presidency, he drastically decreased the national debt, almost down to $30,000. The other thing was the removal of the Indians. Although this was not beneficial for the Indians, it had a great effect on the Americans because more people had opportunities to prosper with the more readily available land.

The worst thing that Jackson did during his terms in office was to get rid of the Bank of the United States. This single act is what ruins his presidency. He put money into many little banks and then they distributed paper money. He should have stopped there but he didn’t. He then enforced the Specie Circular which forced all banks to give gold and silver in place of the paper money. Many banks didn’t have the coinage and went bankrupt. This all led tom the Economic Crisis of 1837.

One of the lasting contributions that Jackson had on future Presidents was Jacksonian Democracy. Although it is not in effect today, it was the basis of countless Presidents after him. Some of these were Van Buren and Tyler. Another Contribution was the Spoils System. He did not create it or intentionally support it but he had a great impact on future Presidents in employing this concept into their presidencies. These are really the only two things contributed by Jackson.

In conclusion, Jackson Deserves a C- because he truly was an average President. He did do some really good things like remove our debt for a brief period. On the contrary, he also did many bad things like remove the Bank and sent the United States into a state of economic crisis. He was clearly not the best president that ever governed over this country bur he did have periods of greatness during his Presidency and that is what earned him this grade.


 * Bibliography**
 * 1824. "Andrew Jackson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. .
 * campaign., the public discussion of their supposed immorality during the. "Andrew Jackson." //State Library of North Carolina//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. .
 * favorite, the Eternal! I'll smash them!" So he did. His, Van Buren, became Vice President, and where he died in June 1845.. "Andrew Jackson | The White House." //The White House//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2010. .
 * "U.S. Senate: Art & History Home > Origins & Development > Party Division." //U.S.// //Senate//. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Jan. 2010. <[]>.