Andrew Jackson Impact On American Democracy

Democracy is the central feature of government in the United States of America. It was an idea set forth by our Founding Fathers as the building block upon which our nation would grow. Democracy is a constant in American government but it was radically changed with the election of Andrew Jackson to the presidency in 1828. Jackson wanted to bring the common people back into the government, taking it away from the elitists that had begun to dominate American politics. What was important to his philosophy was that people participate and get involved in politics regardless of their status because that was the true ideal of American democracy. This era of politics that Jackson inaugurated in 1828 became known as Jacksonian Democracy, and would shape …show more content…
For this reason, he detested the Bank of the United States and its considerable influence on the American economy (ushistory.org). It served as the antithesis of many of Jackson’s policies, and it became a major target as he entered his second term. The bank controlled about 20% of the nation’s loans and one-third of the nation’s deposits (SparkNotes Editors). This was an unacceptable amount of control that one institution had over the economy, and when the bank’s recharter bill passed Congress in 1832, Jackson quickly vetoed it. Old Hickory declared the bank unconstitutional, even though the Supreme Court had already ruled otherwise in McCulloch v. Maryland, setting a precedent for the use of vetoes future presidents (Kennedy). Jackson showed the heightened power of the presidency and that the president could use a veto when they felt a law was harmful to the nation, even if Congress and the Supreme Court had differing views. These actions towards the bank were not enough for the president who was always itching for a chance to show his power and he went out to destroy the Bank of the United States. Disregarding all effects it would have on the nation’s economy, Jackson methodically withdrew the government’s money from the bank, driving it into the ground (Kennedy). The shortsightedness Jackson showed in dealing with the bank was consistent of …show more content…
One of the core philosophies of Jacksonian Democracy was the expansion of the nation westward (Harris). Moving west was an important goal for the young nation as more land and resources were needed for the growing population. This idea of Manifest Destiny, the desire to see America stretch from Atlantic to Pacific, would be pushed along by Jackson. This was a part of the ideals of Jacksonian Democracy that would long out live his presidency. As future generations of Americans would strive to move west and fulfill these ideals. He created new laws and legislation that made it easier to continue westward expansion and anyone in the way would be crushed (Harris). These acts would be continued by future administrations, who wanted to do their part in achieving Manifest Destiny. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was a prime example of Jackson overstepping his boundaries to ensure his policies were followed (Brands). It provided for the forced removal of Native American tribes east of the Mississippi River to be moved west to Indian Territory. This was challenged by two Supreme Court cases Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, and Worcester v. Georgia which established the rights of Native Americans (Brands). Yet Jackson dared Chief Justice John Marshal to stop him, and overstepped these rulings forcing the Native Americans to move in what would become known as the Trail of