WISDOM FROM THE ANNALS OF HISTORY

UNDERSTANDING JACKSONIAN “DEMOCRACY”:  A HARBINGER OF SELF-CENTERED PRESIDENTS TO COME?

By S.C. Burns

          Most Americans do not understand the full hypocrisy behind the oxymoron, Jacksonian Democracy, especially as it emerged more clearly during President Andrew Jackson’s presidency (1929-1937).  From the Native Americans of the Southeastern United States, to the plantation slaves of the South, to the poor whites on the frontier and in the factories—Jackson spoiled the American dream.  His “kitchen cabinet” of friendly but uninformed advisors was famous for receiving appointments as the “spoils of war.”  They were his pals who supported him as an Indian fighter, during his election, but were not intellectually prepared to be presidential advisors.  CLEARLY, this story starts with Jackson’s election campaign promises!

Before he was elected, Jackson played the role of the self-made man of the frontier, raising himself up from his bootstraps to grab the American dream—wealth and fame—from the War of 1812 to the Indian wars, and plantation life.  Old Hickory was idolized as the common man who, through strength, rose from nothing to become the nation's leader. The fact that he was raised in a middle class family was quietly hidden.  Don’t forget that, at this point in history, the voting franchise had changed dramatically.  In the Early Republic, only elite, propertied white males could vote, and thus hold office.  By the 1820s, the franchise had been extended to all white men, 17 and older.  They did not have to be literate, own property, be employed or even sober.  This was the group to whom Jackson must appeal, in order to get elected.  To best woo this forgotten man sector, he had to identify an enemy to destroy.  Sound familiar?!!

In Jackson's mind, that enemy emerged in the form of the 2^nd National Bank of the U.S.—the bank which regulated lending practices.  If Jackson could convince the public that this institution was unconstitutional and responsible for farm foreclosures on the frontier, he could secure his popularity and appearance of strength, especially important for an election to a second term as president.  (Voters, take note!)  Why was this important?  Because many poor farmers on the frontier were losing their farms, thanks to easy lending practices by the wildcat banks.  These banks (often referred to as Jackson's "pet banks") tried to blame these foreclosures on the Second National Bank, which regulated interest rates and required regular payments (like any responsible lending institution).  Jackson fanned the flames of the fires which his “pet banks” lit, in order to win the votes of the common man.  So how did Old Hickory carry out this crime?

The National Banks (1^st and 2^nd) were the depositories for all federal funds.  Jackson knew that, without these funds, the bank would immediately become unstable.  His first Secretary of the Treasury was asked to remove all federal funds from the national bank.  This man, Samuel D. Ingham (appointed in 1829), refused to do so—stating that this action was unconstitutional.  He was fired.  Jackson’s second Secretary of the Treasury was Louis McLane (appointed in 1831).  He was given the same command, refused on the same grounds, and of course, was fired.  This continued with his third Secretary of the Treasury, William J. Duane (appointed in 1833), who followed suit—and was fired.  Alas!  Jackson finally found a man who would do his bidding.  His Attorney General (appointed in 1831) was named acting Secretary of the Treasury.  In this position, Roger B. Taney agreed to remove all federal funds.  

When Treasury Secretary Duane refused to do so, Jackson named Taney Acting Secretary in his stead. Taney's appointment was never confirmed by Congress, but during his nine months as Acting Secretary he transferred the Government's deposits from the Second Bank to designated commercial banks.

https://www.treasury.gov/about/history/Pages/rbtaney.aspx

          Interestingly, Congress refused to confirm Taney as Secretary of the Treasury.  That didn’t deter Jackson from saving his favorite son:

Taney resigned when Congress refused to confirm his appointment as Secretary in 1834. Two years later, Jackson, in gratitude for Taney's actions against the Second Bank, appointed him Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

https://www.treasury.gov/about/history/Pages/rbtaney.aspx

The immediate legacy of this action was the 1837 Bank Panic, as one after another of Jackson’s “pet banks” failed.  Because of their lack of regulation, these banks struggled to stay afloat by forcing mortgage payments from unqualified farm buyers.  AGAIN, sound familiar?  As farms were foreclosed upon, banks folded as well, and this scenario repeated itself.  For the remainder of the 19^th century, cycles of recession and depression occurred.  In the 1890s, wealthy financier J.P. Morgan loaned moneys to the federal government to secure stability.  When he passed away in 1913, the federal government established the Federal Reserve.  What was its role?  To stabilize and regulate lending practices!

          That is not the end of the Jackson/Taney story, however.  Neither Jackson nor Taney would be deterred by law and precedent!  Taney would go on to make many famous rulings, including the 1857 Dred Scott decision—which informed Dred and his wife, Harriet Scott, that all slaves were property of their masters and mistresses.  Whether they were in slave or free territory, they were property.  As property, they were not citizens, and could never file a suit or testify against their owners—or any white person.  This is the precedent upon which Lincoln and Douglas conducted their famous debates.  Now, back to another of Jackson’s unconstitutional legacies (dark spots) on U.S. History

          The Native Americans of the western hemisphere were constantly destroyed by bacteria, viruses and bullets by the various Europeans who invaded their territories.  After the United States was firmly established by the 1787 Constitution, those that remained in the Southeastern United States were eventually given a new promise.  The men they called the “great white fathers,” Presidents Washington and Jefferson, promised them that their best course would be to accustom themselves to the idea of private land ownership, and also assimilate to white ways.  If they would dress, talk and educate themselves in the ways of the white man, they would be secure in holding onto their native lands.  The five civilized tribes of the Southeast (Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, Cherokee and Seminole) followed their advice.  The Cherokee did this so well that they became very wealthy in the state of Georgia, building great plantations, owning slaves to assist them.  They not only went to mission schools to speak, read and write English, but Sequoyah secured the preservation of the Cherokee language by establishing an alphabetical method for writing that language. Their Cherokee constitution mirrored that of the United States.  The Cherokee fulfilled their part of the bargain, and were eventually declared a “nation within a nation,” by the Supreme Court ruling of the Marshall court.  The following is in response to Jackson’s 1830 Indian Removal Act:

1831: Supreme Court rules Indian nations not subject to state law

The second of three court cases (the “Marshall Trilogy”) that become the foundation of American Indian law is decided. The case involves whether state law can apply to a Native nation. In Georgia, the state has been steadily moving onto Cherokee Nation lands, trying to impose state laws on the tribe. Despite Cherokee efforts to halt these acts, Georgia refuses to stop. In Cherokee Nation v. Georgia, Chief Justice John Marshall finds that the Cherokee Nation is not a foreign nation as originally defined under the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause but is instead a “domestic dependent nation,” under the protection of the federal government. State laws therefore cannot be imposed on the tribe.

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/nativevoices/timeline/278.html

          Did that deter Jackson from removing these natives, especially after gold was discovered on Cherokee lands?  Absolutely not!  The Indian Removal Act of 1830 would be carried out, in spite of the Supreme Court ruling.  Poor white men were still looking for fertile lands upon which to build their American dream, and these “five civilized tribes” were targeted.  The first to be removed were the Choctaw tribe.  One of their chiefs described their trip (to a newspaper journalist) as a “Trail of Tears.”

A Choctaw miko (chief) was quoted by the Arkansas Gazette that the removal was a "trail of tears and death." After removal the Choctaws became three distinct groups, the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Jena Band of Choctaw Indians, and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians.

https://www.revolvy.com/topic/Choctaw%20Trail%20of%20Tears

          By this Indian Removal Act, Jackson broke all former treaties with the Native Americans of the Southeastern United States, and defied the Supreme Court as well.  Was this constitutional?  Absolutely not.  It is the story of an American president grabbing power, outside of his job description—not being taken to task by Congress or the American people!  Congress enabled the president to go beyond the bounds of his executive powers:

The Indian Removal Act of 1830 authorized Pres. Andrew Jackson to accelerate the westward movement of Europeans by relocating Indian tribes to unsettled land west of the Mississippi River. While the act had explicitly provided for the purchase of land from willing parties, the Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole had little desire to leave their established communities to begin anew beyond the frontier. When faced with forced removal, the Cherokee used the American federal court system to press their claims against the state of Georgia. Although the Supreme Courttwice ruled in favour of the Cherokee nation, Georgia ignored the ruling, and Jackson is said to have declared privately, “[Chief Justice] John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it.” 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Five-Civilized-Tribes

          By 1839, the majority of these five civilized tribes had been marched along this trail, through freezing cold weather, hot weather, exposed to the elements, thousands dying along the route to Oklahoma. 

Is it any wonder that historians continually warn Americans about the dangers of HISTORY REPEATING ITSELF?  We are appalled, frightened, disgusted beyond belief that the American populace—through the people we elect—will not learn from history.  To state that Jackson’s actions impacted the economy for decades to come is not an overstatement.  Neither is it an overstatement to warn Americans to wake up, read the new tax bill, and become aware of how Congress tends to vote on their own behalf—not in the interests of the American people.  The U.S. and world economies, the environment and the future of our planet all depend upon every American becoming alert, engaged and responsive to the dangers immediately facing us.