Andrew Jackson, a true liberitarian

Here's a paper by Charlie Cleaver reviewing the book, "Liberty and Power" by Harry Watson which talks about our country during the early 19th century and the Jackson administration.


The book Liberty and Power provides a great deal of insight into the Jackson administration and its surroundings. It also provides intricate details into the years and events prior to the election of 1828. The author, Harry L. Watson, presents this period from not only a political aspect, but from a more personal view of those who were most influential during this time. Politically, Watson discusses the different parties and explains their goals and ambitions as well as a variety of other issues coherent to the Jackson administration. He goes through the years and events chronologically and explains their significance. Throughout the book, readers get a glimpse of what issues truly mattered. This provides the basis for understanding their importance.
The book begins by opening the curtains on America just after the war of 1812. The first chapter gives an overview on different things going on in America during this time. For example, the book spends some time examining the trends of U.S citizens and where they decided to migrate. Economics was no less an important issue to Watson as he addresses the political controversy in relation to economical development in 1815. From here, readers get an idea about the formation of the theory and practice of the Republican Party. While readers learn about the political practices of the party, they also gain a better understanding of what the relevant issues were at that time as it pertained to Andrew Jackson.
At this point, Watson spends some time on the election of 1824. This is better known by Jackson as the “corrupt bargain”. While this chapter proved to be one of the more interesting chapters in the book, it gives readers a more broad view of the matter as a whole. It examines Jackson political career up to this point and gives the perspectives of the men involved in the “bargain”. After the incident, the book goes into detail about the different sides that people naturally took. Those supporting Jackson were naturally angry that the incident even took place, while those in favor of Adams were quite pleased with the arrangement and the outcome. While the result of the 1824 election would anger Jackson, he would have the last laugh.
The next two chapters deal with Andrew Jackson’s inauguration and the events following. The book goes into some detail about how radically different Jackson was than his predecessors by outlining some of the different ideas the new president held. One particular varying ideal was Jackson’s vendetta against the Bank of the United States. Regardless of his motives, Jackson’s war with the banks was more than a small issue. The book states that thousands stood against Jackson in order to stop this from happening. Jackson however; would not be deterred. In the chapter about the Bank of the United States, the author explains some of the negatives in regards to the federal bank. This may have been the authors attempt to capitulate Jackson’s reasons for ending its career.
After dealing with the Jackson Presidency, the next chapter goes into detail about the circumstances following in the years after he stepped down as commander in chief. The aftermath of Jackson’s presidency would leave an everlasting impression on the office and America as a whole. That appears to be what the author is trying to get across to the readers. The Democratic - Republican Party was now embodied in the next president, Martin Van Buren. The book then discusses the different political parties. It is interesting to note that an importance was now being placed into the political parties for the first time. Both Van Buren and Jackson had already begun to realize this.
Watson’s next chapter deals with Van Buren’s presidency as well as his relationship with the Whig party. Van Buren had a very interesting relationship with one Whig in particular named William Henry Harrison. John Tyler is no less a character in this chapter as it discusses his relationship with other likeminded southerners such as Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. This then leads into the last chapter which surrounded the topic of political rivalry, specifically between Jackson’s Democratic Party and the Whig’s. This was called the “Second American Party System” because it was very similar to the previous political rivalry between the Federalists and the old Republicans.
Overall, this book provided an interesting outlook into the lives of so many influential people that lived and worked within the political spectrum during this time. The author presents the relative topics in a fair and non-discriminatory manor. Watson also offers up an immense amount of specific information about these topics as well as the individuals involved. The book begins by setting the stage for Jackson and takes readers through the years and the issues that faced politicians at that time. In looking at the period as a whole, it appears impossible to understand without the detail that Liberty and Power, goes into. The Jacksonian era was truly a ground breaking period in American History. This book helped explain its importance as well as its significance pertaining to future events in the years to come.