King Andrew: Champion of the Northern White Man

Some people refer to President Andrew Jackson as "King Andrew" while others call him "Champion of the Common Man". I, however, consider him to be "King Andrew: Champion of the Northern White Man".

During Andrew's campaign, he mainly appealed to the "planter elite" in the South. He promoted the idea that the common man was capable of uncommon achievements. He was said to have "Heart and Soul with the plain folk". However, he himself was a wealthy slave owner. So much for "common man".

But once Andrew Jackson was elected as the seventh President of the United States, that all changed. First, he implemented the spoils system, putting all of his avid supporters in office, most of which were rich, white State Politicians.

His Presidency was very successful in the beginning, being able to pay off a large portion of the national debt. However, this success was short lived due to the following economic downfall known as the Panic of 1837.

The contriversy began when he took action against the National Bank. He believed it had too much power, and favored Northern states above the South. This would be one of the two (the other being the Indian Removal Act, which drove Native Americans from the South) things that President Jackson did that made him appreciated by the "Common man".

After this, it seems that Jackson changed his mind completely about the south. He passed the "Tarriff of Abominations", as it was known in the South, which put a tax on imports in an

attempt to promote American industry. This severely hurt the South, causing angry Southerners to revolt and even attempt assassination. However, the "Tariff of 1828", as it was called in the North, caused American industry to boom and pleased the wealthy, northern, businessmen.

Although Andrew Jackson was a very successful President, he had several enemies and did not benefit the common man in any way. His legacy is mixed, seen as a protector of popular democracy, as well as individual liberty. That is why I consider President Andrew Jackson as "King Andrew: Champion of the Northern White Man".

Jefferson's Vision: One Man's Dream or a Legacy?

Thomas Jefferson was not the typical presidential candidate. The first two presidents, Washington and Adams, had focussed on building up a strong central government. That was the only way they knew how to form a country since that is how it had been back in England. Jefferson started the Democratic-Republican party, and was the first candidate from it. Jefferson had a vision of a nation with limited federal government involvement in the daily lives of the people. He wanted to focus the economy on independent farmers and agriculture instead of merchants and bussinessmen. He did not want a class-divided, industrialized nation like Europe was. With his idealistic vision and appeal to the average American, he won the election of 1800 and became the first Democratic-Republican president.

The time that Jefferson presided the country was known as the Jeffersonian Era. During his presidency, he did several things in an attempt to work toward his vision. He lowered

government spending, especially on the military, and repealed the Alien and Sedition Acts. In 1803, he made the Louisiana Purchase, doubling the side of the United States. He did all he could to promote simplicity and frugality.

However, after he was reelected in 1804, he experienced several problems that interupted developing his vision of America. Events such as the British attack on the USS Chesapeake; the trial of his former vice president, Aaron Burr; and the Napoleonic wars in Europe. American commerce was caught in the conflict between Great Britain and France. Jefferson passed the embargo policy in 1807, which forbade U.S. trading vessels to leave port for any foreign destination. Merchants, traders, seamen, and farmers growing crops for export, were outraged. The Embargo Act was repealed in 1809. Soon after, his term ended.

Even though Jefferson was not in office, the "Jeffersonian Era" continued on until the late 1820s. Thomas Jefferson had been interested in Freedom of Religion. His ideas helped spark the seperation of church and state later in American history. He fought for states rights and to reduce the power of the federal government, which eventually balanced out.

I believe that Jefferson's visions lived on throughout his presidency and the Jeffersonian Era. Although his second term distracted his attention, his development of the values of the Democratic-Republican party helped set the guidelines for future candidates to continue to carry out his vision of America.