Jacksonian America and Alexis de Tocqueville American Political

Jacksonian America and Alexis de Tocqueville American Political History, Topic 5

�To white American males, Jacksonian America was a land of relative equality and opportunity: a burgeoning democracy dubbed the “Age of the Common Man. ” Alexis de Tocqueville, the French aristocrat who toured the United States in 1831 and 1832 during the middle of Andrew Jackson’s two terms as president (1829 -1836), observed that there was a “general equality of condition among the people, ” which “brings the notion of political rights to the level of the humblest citizens, just as the dissemination of wealth brings the notion of property within the reach of all the members of the community. ” Background: Jacksonian America

Seeing History Theodore Chasseriau, Alexis de Tocqueville (1850) (in the publc domain at wikimedia. org)

� For the limited sample of the population about which he wrote—one that excluded women, African Americans, and Native Americans—America of the late-1820 s, 1830 s, and 1840 s was a nation in which the Democratic Party of Andrew Jackson and his successors championed democracy and the potential of the average American, assaulted the privilege of powerful elites, and widened opportunity for the common man. Despite doing nothing to challenge slavery and overseeing the removal of almost every major eastern Indian tribe to west of the Mississippi River, Jackson and his party members, who were opposed by National Republicans and Whigs, did believe that the realm of politics was not reserved for aristocrats by birth. Instead, Democrats believed that, through education, hard work, and talent, any white American male should be able to rise to political prominence. Background: Jacksonian Democrats

� Indeed, Jackson—who had been born to a Scotch-Irish immigrant family on the frontier and then orphaned and who had through great courage, ambition, and intelligence become a successful lawyer and businessman, major general and military hero of the War of 1812 and Indian wars in the Southeast, and Tennessee legislator—considered himself a case in point for the democratization of the nation. Though Jackson quickly became known as the “president of the common man, ” in retrospect, he was probably less concerned with increasing anti-elitism, egalitarianism, and equality of opportunity in general than he was with challenging the prominence of eastern elites by giving more power to rising entrepreneurs in the South and West. Background: AJ as Self-Made Man

Seeing History Currier and Ives, The Brave Boy of the Waxhaws (1876) at the U. S. Library of Congress (in the public domain at wikimedia. org)

�What principles or lessons stand out to you from the history covered by the preceding slides? �What one word would you choose to describe the history covered by the preceding slides? Please explain. �What is the biggest question that you have about the history covered by the preceding slides? Reason from the Background

� “But even though man is nothing, it fills me with wonder and awe to think that ‘the worth of souls is great in the sight of God. ’ And while we may look at the vast expanse of the universe and say, ‘What is man in comparison to the glory of creation? ’ God Himself said we are the reason He created the universe! His work and glory—the purpose for this magnificent universe—is to save and exalt mankind. In other words, the vast expanse of eternity, the glories and mysteries of infinite space and time are all built for the benefit of ordinary mortals like you and me. Our Heavenly Father created the universe that we might reach our potential as His sons and daughters. This is a paradox of man: compared to God, man is nothing; yet we are everything to God. While against the backdrop of infinite creation we may appear to be nothing, we have a spark of eternal fire burning within our breast. We have the incomprehensible promise of exaltation— worlds without end—within our grasp. And it is God’s great desire to help us reach it” (President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Nov. Ensign 2011). Relate the Words of Modern Prophets

� Nevertheless, to many Americans, their perceptions of reality were all that mattered, and several sweeping changes in national life seemed to confirm the rise of the common man that they hoped was actual. Though the distribution of wealth and property did not change much during the Age of Jackson, what did change significantly and undeniably was the amount of popular participation in politics. Until the 1820 s, even relatively few American males were able to vote because they did not meet the property or taxpaying requirements. Those who owned little property or paid little taxes were barred from the franchise. By the mid-1820 s, however, the constitutions of newly admitted states in the West began granting the right to vote and the right to hold public office to all adult white males, and the older states in the East followed suit by eliminating or reducing property and tax requirements. Background: Popular Participation

�This democratization of the electorate gave rise to mass politics in the United States, which had a huge impact on Jackson’s election of 1828: an election in which the amount of popular participation more than doubled from 1824 (57. 6% compared to 26. 9%) as a result of the loosening of voter requirements. By 1840, the percentage of white males who voted had risen to a robust 80. 2 percent. Popular political participation also expanded with the change in the method of selecting members of the electoral college in each state. In 1800, 10 out of 16 states had chosen electors by a vote of the state legislature; by 1828, every state but South Carolina chose its electors by a vote of the people. Background: Mass Politics

� Another development of the 1820 s and ’ 30 s also accounted for the rise of mass politics: the popularization of the party system. Between 1789 and the 1820 s, many Americans had considered parties to be instruments of tyranny, but, in Jacksonian America, a large portion of the population began to believe that institutionalized parties were the gardeners of democracy. Parties gave Americans common political causes around which to unite in a loyalty that created strength in numbers and gave a set of values and positions a greater chance at success in the rough-and-tumble of national politics. Competing parties also compelled politicians to stay in tune with the agenda of their respective party’s members—or face rejection—and acted as checks and balances against each other. Parties became machines of favors, rewards, and patronage, and, by the 1830 s, America’s two-party system was fully grown, with the Democrats and Whigs providing two viable alternatives between which the majority of Americans felt comfortable choosing. From then to today, supporting a third party has been almost futile— though some still do it proudly in the name of conscience and hope that others will join them. Background: The Party System

Seeing History Ralph Eleaser Whiteside Earl, Employee of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Portrait of Andrew Jackson (in the public domain at wikimedia. org)

� Jackson fought several tough political battles to put the Democrats’ party philosophy into practice. Speaking for his party, Jackson said that he worked for a democracy in which “equal protection and equal benefits” would be offered to each white male citizen. To broaden protection and benefits for this group of Americans, Jackson attacked the eastern aristocracy. He ousted entrenched officeholders in the federal government to provide opportunities for common men—especially ascending men of talent from the South and West who had put him in office. In what became known as the “spoils system, ” Jackson removed one-fifth of federal officeholders and replaced them with his own supporters, which, though previously done on a limited basis, began a trend of presidents and other government officials rewarding pre-election support with post -election jobs. Jackson and his followers also popularized the national party convention as a means for nominating a party’s presidential candidate: a method they believed would encourage democracy by giving the people—rather than an aristocratic political institution like a congressional caucus—the power to select their nomination. Background: Political Battles

�What principles or lessons stand out to you from the history covered by the preceding slides? �What one word would you choose to describe the history covered by the preceding slides? Please explain. �What is the biggest question that you have about the history covered by the preceding slides? Reason from the Background

� “The Church’s mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, not to elect politicians. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is neutral in matters of party politics. This applies in all of the many nations in which it is established. The Church does not: Endorse, promote or oppose political parties, candidates or platforms. Allow its church buildings, membership lists or other resources to be used for partisan political purposes. Attempt to direct its members as to which candidate or party they should give their votes to. This policy applies whether or not a candidate for office is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Attempt to direct or dictate to a government leader. ” Relate the Words of Modern Prophets

� “The Church does: Encourage its members to play a role as responsible citizens in their communities, including becoming informed about issues and voting in elections. Expect its members to engage in the political process in an informed and civil manner, respecting the fact that members of the Church come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences and may have differences of opinion in partisan political matters. Request candidates for office not to imply that their candidacy or platforms are endorsed by the Church. Reserve the right as an institution to address, in a nonpartisan way, issues that it believes have significant community or moral consequences or that directly affect the interests of the Church. In the United States, where nearly half of the world’s Latter -day Saints live, it is customary for the Church at each national election to issue a letter to be read to all congregations encouraging its members to vote, but emphasizing the Church’s neutrality in partisan political matters” (Official Statement on Political Neutrality, newsroom. lds. org, accessed 31 October 2011). Relate the Words of Modern Prophets

� Jackson also fought to reduce the functions of the federal government (though he was firmly committed to the indissolubility of the Union and to the supremacy of the national government in issues over which the national and state governments were at odds—thus the Nullification Crisis of the early 1830 s in South Carolina). The greatest expression of Jackson’s opposition to federal power—as well as aristocratic power—was his attack against the Bank of the United States. By the 1830 s, the Bank was the most powerful financial establishment in the nation, the only place the national government could deposit its own funds, and an institution that provided credit, bank notes, and oversight for state banks. Background: Jackson vs. the Bank

� Advocates of “soft money” despised the Bank because it did not allow them to issue notes freely; advocates of “hard money, ” such as Jackson, opposed it because it did not back its notes with gold or silver. When, in 1832, a bill to renew the Bank’s charter (which was to expire in 1836) passed Congress, Jackson vetoed it. Despite stiff opposition from Nicholas Biddle, the Bank’s president, and Daniel Webster and Henry Clay—two of the most powerful politicians in Washington—Jackson took the national government’s deposits from the Bank and shifted them to state banks (dubbed Jackson’s “pet banks”) and, in 1836, refused to renew the Bank’s charter, which destroyed it and anything like it until the creation of the Independent Treasury System (1846), a series of national banks (from 1863), and, finally, the Federal Reserve System (1913). Background: Jackson Victorious

Seeing History "Democratic Whig Head Quarters, " U. S. Print from 1840 (in public domain at wikimedia. org)

Seeing History Jim Bowen from Zhenhai, China, Photograph of Andrew Jackson's Home, The Hermitage, near Nashville, Tennessee (2007) (published by the copyright holder under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2. 0 Generic license at wikimedia. org)

Seeing History Edward W. Clay, Lithograph of Jackson Destroying the Bank (c. 1832) (in the public domain at wikimedia. org)

�What principles or lessons stand out to you from the history covered by the preceding slides? �What one word would you choose to describe the history covered by the preceding slides? Please explain. �What is the biggest question that you have about the history covered by the preceding slides? Reason from the Background

� “The financial program of the Church—both income and disbursement—is found in sections 119 and 120 of the Doctrine and Covenants. Except for fast offerings and missionary funds, two statements found in these brief revelations constitute the Lord’s law of finance and the management program of the fiscal affairs of the Church. Section 119 simply states that all members ‘shall pay one-tenth of all their interest [that which is income] annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever … saith the Lord’ (D&C 119: 4). Then, concerning the disbursement of the money which comes from the tithing, the Lord has said: ‘Verily, thus saith the Lord, … it shall be disposed of by a council, composed of the First Presidency of my Church, and of the bishop and his council, and by my high council; and by mine own voice unto them, saith the Lord’ (D&C 120). These eighteen men —the Presidency, the Twelve, and the Presiding Bishopric—constitute the Council on the Disposition of the Tithes. What might be regarded as executive committees of this larger council include the Budget Committee and the Appropriations Committee. The expenditure of all Church funds comes under the purview of these bodies. In the financial operations of the Church, we have observed two basic and fixed principles: One, the Church will live within its means. It will not spend more than it receives. Two, a fixed percentage of the income will be set aside to build reserves against what might be called a possible ‘rainy day’” (President Gordon B. Hinckley, May Ensign 1991). Relate the Words of Modern Prophets

�What does Tocqueville say about equality of condition in America? What does it cause? What are its effects? Reason from the Source

�What does Tocqueville say about democracy in America? What does he believe it achieves? What does he believe it seeks? How does it relate to Jackson? Reason from the Source

�What does Tocqueville say about the “moral power” of the majority and majority tyranny? Reason from the Source

�How does the document relate to FACE Principle #1: God’s Principle of Individuality: “Everything in God's universe reveals His infinity and diversity. Each person is a unique creation of God, designed to express the nature of Christ individually in society. The quality of man's government is primarily determined in his heart”? Relate the FACE Seven Principles

�How does the document relate to Mosiah 29: 25 - 27 and Mosiah 29: 32? ◦ “Therefore, choose you by the voice of this people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord. ” ◦ “Now it is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people. ” Relate the Anchor Scriptures

�How does the document relate to Mosiah 29: 25 - 27 and Mosiah 29: 32? ◦ “And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land. ” ◦ “And now I desire that this inequality should be no more in this land, especially among this my people; but I desire that this land be a land of liberty, and every man may enjoy his rights and privileges alike, so long as the Lord sees fit that we may live and inherit the land, yea, even as long as any of our posterity remains upon the face of the land. ” Relate the Anchor Scriptures