A Short, Easy Guide to the Presidency of Andrew Jackson in Question and Answer Format

Originally published as a section of the author’s larger “Conversations in Early American History: 1492-1837,” and equivalent in length to a physical book of approximately 24 pages, this Kindle edition, in easy-to-follow question-and-answer format, clearly describes the Presidency of Andrew Jackson. Sample passage: What else did Jackson do that was different from other Presidents? Every President has a group of advisors known as the Cabinet. At first, under President George Washington, there were four Cabinet Members; namely, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of War, and the Attorney General. By Jackson’s time, two more had been added—the Postmaster General and the Secretary of the Navy. But Jackson didn’t ask his Cabinet for advice. Why not? Jackson preferred to ask advice from a group of his friends—mostly journalists and publishers—who had nothing at all to do with the government. Because Jackson met with this group informally and because they left the White House by a back door, they came to be known as Jackson’s “kitchen cabinet.” You mentioned the phrase “King Andrew.” Is that something people called Jackson because of his tendency to do things his own way, even if it ignored convention and upset people? That’s right. But the “spoils system” and “kitchen cabinet” were the least of it. As you know, the three branches of government—executive, legislative, and judicial—are supposed to be equal. They’re supposed to “check and balance” each other so that no one branch becomes too strong. But Jackson tried to—and did—strengthen the executive branch by acting king-like. What do you mean? For one thing, he often ignored the will of Congress (the legislative branch) by vetoing bills they passed. For example, in 1830 Congress passed a bill that provided funds to build a 60-mile road, called the Maysville Road, in northeastern Kentucky. The road would connect the towns of Maysville and Lexington and serve as an extension of the National (Cumberland) Road. About the author: Mark Phill