Jackson: Whigs Editorial

Whigs Editorial Now that Andrew Jackson is leaving the White House, we should look back on the past eight years. Jackson has done many things, some we commend, other we criticize. We commend his action during the nullification crisis. We must criticize the actions of Jackson during the bank wars and the Indian Removal. The nullification crisis started when a proposed alliance of South and West to reduce tariff and the price of land did not happen. This was because Webster had discredited the South in the eyes of the western patriots and partly because the plants of South Carolina and Georgia, feared the competition of the fertile cotton lands in the West, opposed rapid exploitation of the West. When the tariff of 1832 was passed, the South began the talk of nullification. Jackson realized that if states can nullify laws of Congress, the Union would not exist. So he gave a warning to the South Carolina representative, but the representative did not take it seriously. The convention passed ordinance of nullification prohibiting the collection of tariff duties in states. Then the state legislature authorized the raising of an army an approved money to supply weapons. In response, Jackson began military preparations. He also tried to resolve this peacefully by trying to lower the tariff even more. On December 10, Jackson told the people of South Carolina that disunion by armed forces would be an act of treason and if they do that, he would resort to use force. South Carolina finally backed down when the new tariff and the force bill was approved. Jackson did the right thing by trying to resolve the nullification, but he took it too far. He made threats that weren’t necessary, he even threatened his Vice President, Calhoun. Even the followers of Jackson thought we was acting too rash. Those threats weren’t needed since South Carolina ended up backing down once they got something they wanted. The actions of Jackson during the bank wars were unbelievable. Jackson