Quote:
Originally posted by Rudey
Those of us who live in remote Oklahoma would consider it "a bit". This is you.
Those of us who live in metropolitan cities that are hubs in all regards for this country, consider it "a lot". This is me.
The people loved Jackson not just because of his "Hero of New Orleans" background but because he was a man of the people. There are anecdotal stories of how he brought "lower class" people into the white house and destroyed the furniture. The people rewarded Jackson for the fact that he brought wholesale slaughter to thousands. He decimated Indian populations (Creek and Seminole), stole land without government approval (Creek and Cherokee), and murdered free blacks (Florida) and then enslaved the remaining blacks. The Trail of Tears (Cherokee) was Jackson's doing. So for that the American people rewarded him. Congress didn't; they censured him and it led to the elimination of certain radicals that would later allow Grant to win over Wade. The censure was almost as bad as impeachment. The hero lost a lot of popularity in New Orleans after he jailed some people under martial law. Johnson had doubts about reconstruction which went against pro-reconstructionist congress. But the doubts weren't the reason; Johnson decided to sack certain people like the secretary of war (tenure of office-later found to be unconstitutional after repeal) and increase the power of the President at the expense of Congress.
-Rudey
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You're correct about Jackson. He was a bigot, pure and simple, and his antics would have driven him from office in our time, assuming he'd have had the temerity to even run. We've had political figures whose careers have been ruined for plagiarism in recent years, and I can only imagine what someone with Jackson's beliefs would suffer today.
On the other hand, we do have Harry Byrd...
