Andrew Jackon :: essays research papers

More nearly than any of his predecessors, Andrew capital of Mississippi was elected by popular vote as President he sought to act as the direct representative of the common man. Born in a backwoods settlement in the Carolinas in 1767, he trustworthy sporadic education. But in his late teens he read law for about two years, and he became an outstanding young lawyer in Tennessee. fiercely jealous of his honor, he engaged in brawls, and in a duel killight-emitting diode a man who cast an unjustified slur on his wife Rachel. Jackson prospered sufficiently to buy slaves and to build a mansion, the Hermitage, near Nashville. He was the first man elected from Tennessee to the House of Representatives, and he served briefly in the Senate. A study general in the War of 1812, Jackson became a national hero when he defeated the British at New Orleans. President Bush life-timeVice President Cheney BiographyLaura Bush BiographyLynne Cheney Biography In 1824 some state political factions rall ied around Jackson by 1828 enough had joined "Old Hickory" to win numerous state elections and control of the Federal administration in Washington. In his first Annual Message to congress, Jackson recommended eliminating the electoral College. He also tried to democratize Federal officeholding. Already state machines were being built on patronage, and a New York Senator openly proclaimed "that to the victors operate the spoils. . . . " Jackson took a milder view. Decrying officeholders who seemed to enjoy life tenure, he believed Government duties could be "so plain and simple" that offices should rotate among deserving applicants. As national governance polarized around Jackson and his opposition, two parties grew out of the old Republican Party--the Democratic Republicans, or Democrats, adhering to Jackson and the National Republicans, or Whigs, opposing him. Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, and other Whig leading proclaimed themselves defenders of popular liberties against the usurpation of Jackson. Hostile cartoonists portrayed him as King Andrew I. Behind their accusations lay the fact that Jackson, unlike previous Presidents, did not defer to Congress in policy-making but used his power of the veto and his party leadership to assume command. The greatest party battle centered around the act Bank of the United States, a private corporation but virtually a Government-sponsored monopoly. When Jackson appeared hostile toward it, the Bank threw its power against him. Clay and Webster, who had acted as attorneys for the Bank, led the fight for its recharter in Congress.