Andrew Jackson- definitely a zero
A man who abused his presidential rights
Inflicted Harm On Others
Trail of Tears Andrew Jackson was a person who based on his opinion inflicted harm on thousands of others. Andrew Jackson personally did not like Native Americans, possibly due to his experiences during the war of 1812 and other experiences . During his presidency he forced thousands of Native Americans out of their homes into reservations where they were poorly cared for and many died on the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears was the route Cherokee's took to get from their homes in Cherokee Nation to the reservations in Oklahoma. Soldiers ripped them out of their homes without coats and many even without shoes. About 25 percent of Cherokees (about 8,000) died of pneumonia and other reasons on the Trail of Tears. The trail of tears was long and harsh. In one recounting, the chief's wife died of pneumonia after giving her only blanket to a sick child. Men sometimes whipped poor old and young men and women to get them to hurry. The soldiers pretty much had free reign over these men and women. Andrew Jackson inflicted these harsh conditions on these people, when he could have been making sure that they were as comfortable as possible at the least, since he was moving them out of their sacred homeland for something as trivial as gold.
Defied the Law
Worcester vs. Georgia Georgia started making laws for Cherokees in their lands. In 1828, gold had been found in Georgia, and the demand for the Native American land had increased significantly. One of these laws the Georgia had created was that no white man could set foot on Indian territory without a permit. In 1831, when missionary Samuel Worcester went into Indian Territory to preach to the Natives, he was convicted for not having a permit, and sentenced to 4 years hard labor. Samuel Worcester protested and sent in an appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court agreed to a hearing and heard the case presented by Worcester. Court Judge, John Marshall, decided that the rules were unconstitutional since the Cherokees were proclaimed an independent nation, separate from Georgia and thereby its rules. After hearing this, Andrew Jackson became Angry and said "John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it". Basically this means that the supreme court cannot enforce their ruling, only the president can. So Georgia ignored the court's ruling and continued going on with their laws, Andrew Jackson never lifting a finger. By him doing this, he undermined the Supreme Court's laws, and overstated his, in turn affecting many Native Americans and a few Americans for the worse.
Cherokees on Trail of Tears
Andrew Jackson forced Cherokees out of their homes without coats or shoes and made them walk to long cold journey to reservations in Oklahoma.
Jackson's inauguration
Jackson's inauguration was informal and filled with common folk. Everything was absolutely disorganized and completely inappropriate for such a important event. Afterwards everyone had too much to drink and partied at the white house.
Nullification Crisis
When Jackson passed the tariffs of 1828 and 1832 southern people were mad because they depended on imports. Georgia decided to nullify it and threatened to secede. Jackson basically said you do it, or we crush you. Georgia, cornered, had to obey. This cartoon is showing that it mean't the end of Free Trade for southern people and others who were effected by this tariff.
Went Against what was best for America
Killing the National Bank Andrew Jackson from the beginning was not a fan, to put lightly, of the national bank. He believed it was corrupt and only benefited a group of individuals with their own interests at heart and not the United States as a whole. He believed that it held too much power over the American economy, and that it was unconstitutional. But his beliefs were costly. The Bank had long held up the American economy and had been a source that people could depend on. Luckily, the charter for the bank was not until 1836, which would be the last year of Andrew Jackson's presidency, if he got a second term. However, the bank, trusting that Andrew Jackson would not dare to strike down such an important part of the economy, decided to send the charter in 4 years early. Congress approved, and passed it down to Jackson to sign. But Andrew Jackson, finally seeing his chance, vetoed this bill. Winning his second term, he then moved all of the silver and gold from the national bank to the state banks, leaving the national bank high and dry. Which you might consider a good thing. But for how long? How long until America would need the bank again and it wouldn't be there? All in all, Andrew Jackson's decision cost the United States, and its economy. Eventually it caused steep inflation in the U.S