How Did Andrew Jackson Changed America

The election of 1828 changed America for the worst when Andrew Jackson was elected. Before Jackson became a president, he grew up like any other fatherless child. Him being fatherless and not having any male figures in his life, Jackson grew to be a very harmful man. Jackson was an evil, manipulative human being that created the spoils system. Jackson acted as a unpretentious dictator when he forced the Native Americans out of their original territory. Over-using his power to veto, Jackson destroyed the Second Bank, and many American lives. America’s seventh president, Andrew Jackson, wrecked America.

One of Jackson’s many wrong choices was firing a dozen staff members who have been there since the time of George Washington. The cartoon where Jackson is riding the pig showed
that even politicians laughed about Jackson’s ways. There was a slate in the cartoon that stated “to the victors belong the spoils” meaning the winners get everything, however, in small words on the statue say “fraud”, “bribery”, “spoils” and “plunder” (Doc.G). Jackson wrote a letter to Congress to try and convince that the Spoils System is a great idea. He said that the spoils system was “solely for the benefit of the people, no one man has any more... right to official station than another”(Doc N). During his presidency, a scandal broke out about him having an affair with his dead wife’s sister, Peggy Eaton. His friends, who worked for him, were a main source to the media about the affair. Jackson got sick of it and told the cabinet members they needed to resign.

Along with many other nationalities, Native Americans despised Andrew Jackson, despised him as well.
Jackson evicted all of the Native Americans out of their homes, the process was done forcefully and it was unconstitutional. A first hand account from Private John G. Burnett gave America a slight taste of how horrifying Jackson’s decisions were. From Burnett’s passage reading “I saw the helpless Cherokees arrested and dragged from their homes.and driven at the bayonet point into the stockades”(Doc G). This proved the point Jackson was beyond inconsiderate of anyone besides himself. Before Jackson even began the Indian Removal Act, he tried to get his idea passed. The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Native Americans. Jackson made five of the Indian tribes march west because white settlers found gold in the North, where the Indians resided. Five of the Native American tribes were impacted; they were, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, Seminole, and the Cherokee. The Cherokee tribe was the only tribe to fight the eviction. While marching, one our of every four Cherokees died on the Trail of Tears. Jackson made his name hated even more by the Native Americans by adopting a Creek Indian
baby.

Jackson destroyed America’s financial stability when he closed the Second Bank of the United States. Jackson overused his veto power to much without putting any thought into his choice making. He claimed the reasons for shutting down the Second Bank was to benefit the less fortunate (Doc C). Jackson’s reason for destroying the bank proved Jackson only favored one social class; choosing favorites is one quality a president should never have. In the cartoon where Jackson is slaying the many headed monster, Jackson is being portrayed as a hero, but the artist did not look far enough into the situation to see how Jackson's decision would later on affect America hundred of years later (Doc K). There was another cartoon that was made about Jackson, he was drawn out to be a king. He was wearing a robe and a crown, with a slip in his hand that reads “veto” (Doc D) this cartoon is showing Jackson to be a king.

It can be hard being a president, but that is no excuse for ruining a country and destroying lives. Little people may know, but Jackson killed off thousands of innocent people that were Americans too. Hiring friends is not a professional thing to do, let alone being a president and doing that. Hiring friends may seem like a great idea but later down the road friends may turn to enemies and and turn against you, as in Jackson’s case. Another bad trait Jackson had was overusing his powers. Jackson vetoed anything he felt like was wrong to him, not caring about the other people in their country.Killing off the Second Bank caused many problems for the middle class and the wealthy. Jackson could not care less about their feelings. Jackson’s actions showed the world he was a tyrannical king.