An Analysis Of Andrew Jackson's Spoils System

Jackson wrote a letter to Congress stating that the spoil system was good for the people. He believed that people who supported him should be rewarded with high position jobs. (DOC 6) When it came to making decisions or seeking for advice, he only went to people who were loyal to him. Jackson did not think that anyone would betray him or be disloyal. Samuel Swartwout stole millions of dollars from the government.

Andrew Jackson’s key contribution to the new party system was the practice of using government patronage to reward partisan loyalty. He was the first to release large numbers of federal officeholders upon assuming the presidency. Jackson defended a new policy that civil servants should rotate rather than forming an embedded entitled class. He did not merely appoint men to supported him in the election, rather appointed those who showed great loyalty. Andrew Jackson then devoted himself to the cause of Indian removal.

Andrew Jackson not only merely disliked the banks, but was against them so much that he and his supporters resorted to calling them “Monster Banks”. Jackson tried, and succeeded, to close the Bank of the US during a conflict we know today as the Bank War. This bank war sparked the stock market crash and even a depression. Without the bank, the paper money that people were given had

All the while, President Jackson never changed this practice for the benefit of the people. In the Spoils System document one, there is an illustration created in 1877 depicting Jackson riding a pig followed by the caption, “ To the Victors Belong the Spoils”. This was created to show people that when citizens of a nation truly do not get to decide who is in office, the country is doomed to a system of anarchy. The document told people that Andrew Jackson was not trying to give people a chance to share new ideas, just to get enough votes and voices in for him that he could do anything he wanted to. Since the people were not in support of the Spoils System, Jockson would become an autocrat for only wanting to claim ultimate power over the people.

Since Jackson went through a lot of hardships to take down the bank. He was criticized, thought of as a bad President, but no one likes every president. Even though Andrew Jackson thought the bank should be controlled by elected officials not handed down by generations of family. This was not the only reason people did not like him, he was also criticized for creating the spoil

Jackson developed the economy in a way that no man had too much but every man were financially stable. Jackson built new roads and made other infrastructural improvements especially in the south that were of benefit to the more working class “common man”. Jackson also introduced many Acts and Movements that would help to improve the United States and improve the lives of all US citizens. Andrew Jackson, a former orphan and a war hero, was a popular choice when he was elected seventh President of the United States in 1828. This was based on the fact that Jackson did not hail from a wealthy or “elite” background but from the working class western state of Tennessee.

Furthermore, when he created the spoil system, he changed the federal government into a bureaucracy; a system in which non-elected officials carry out laws. A spoil system is the practice of replacing government employees with the winning candidate’s supporters. This is consequential because if the cabinet only agrees with the president’s point of view, (what happens when the cabinet only agrees with the president). Jackson was a tyrant who abused the powers of the federal government to create the spoil

The image illustrates Andrew Jackson’s creation of a “spoil system”, which gave government positions to individuals who supported him and who he believed would act in his interests. Jackson originally fabricated this system to push individuals to back him in the presidential election.. This visual asserts the popular opinion by the losing party in this election of the corruptness the system and the hunger for power and greed that fueled it.

Brittany Randall-Neppl APUSH Period 6 Mr. Kloster 12/19/2014 Andrew Jackson: Champion of the Common Man or Tyrant Andrew Jackson was born into a common life but overcame his mediocre beginnings to become a powerful politician; in 1828 he was elected president of the United States. However, he abused this position of power and made several choices that were detrimental to the welfare and rights of the American people. Jackson implemented the spoils system on a national scale and had unofficial members of his cabinet who did not have to answer to Congress. After South Carolinians were upset by the Tariff of 1832 he was angry toward those who did not agree with it. He also destroyed the National Bank and authorized the Specie Circular.

He started by replacing many government jobs to officials with his supporters”. This is a major reasons why Jackson was bad. He would be considered an absolute Monarch or King. An example of this is when the Supreme Court sides with the Indians against the state of Georgia, and jackson ignores the supreme court’s ruling. The “spoils system” corrupted the government because no one had a chance to get good at their

This image depicts a statue of Jackson wearing a formal military outfit and riding atop a fat pig, with a saddle covered in dollar symbols. The pig stands on top of several bones and human skulls, as well as banners with the words “Fraud”, “Bribery”, “Plunder” and “Spoils”. This symbolizes that the only way that Jackson rose to power was through dishonest methods, maintaining his position and furthering his personal status only by bribing others or placing supporters into positions of power using the “Spoils System”, a term first used by Senator William Marcy of New York when he said in defending Jacksons usage of the system, in which he said “To the victor belong the spoils of the enemy. ”(Marcy). In this system, members of a rival political party are ejected from office when someone of an opposing faction comes to power and replaced with politicians sharing one’s own political views.

President Andrew Jackson had a strong view on the American economy. He mistrusted many policies and in his time in office drastically changed them to suit his views and ideals. After winning the 1828 election against John Quincy Adams and the 1832 election against Henry Clay, Jackson’s time in office was unquestioned. In his administration, Jackson’s economic policies led to the Panic of 1837 and transformed the American banking system. Jackson’s view on economy lead him to instate acts that significantly transformed the system of American economy such as the abolition of the second Bank of the United States.

President Andrew Jackson was most famously known for being the army general in the War of 1812 and as the seventh president of the United States. Some argue that he is a national hero, but others claim he is a disgrace to society. Going into his presidency, he was a big supporter and advocate for the common man. Andrew Jackson is a hypocrite. Although Jackson claimed to support the common man, he is a hypocrite because he vetoed the bill to re-charter the Second Bank which caused inflation to surge, implemented the Tariff of 1832, and put into place the Specie Circular which eventually led to the Panic of 1837.

He showed unifying leadership during the Nullification Crisis and the Tariff laws of 1828 and 1832, he showed a generous approach of governing through the “Kitchen Cabinet” and the “Spoils System”. Lastly, his concern for economic equality was shown through the veto of the Second Bank of the United States Recharter and his concerns for the common men. All of these qualities that Jackson had shown during his presidency are why Andrew Jackson should be remembered as a hero of the common

During Andrew Jackson's presidency, he enacted an abundance of policies such as expanding voting rights, extending the country's borders, and the spoils system, which benefited the common man. The policy of expanded voting rights reflected Jackson's belief that the common white man should be more involved in the democratic process. The westward expansion brought new land, resources, and opportunities for the common man, but had an unfortunate outcome for the native Americans. President Jackson favored the spoils system, which was a system where he rewarded those who were loyal to him. Thus giving the position in government to the common man instead of the wealthy.