BETWEEN QUINCY AND ABE

From John Quincy Adams (#6) to Abraham Lincoln (#16) there were nine other presidents, seven of whom have been judged as complete failures. Another one, James K. Polk, although frequently found objectionable because of his aggressive pursuit of territorial expansionism epitomized in America’s rather unsavory conduct in the Mexican-American War, has been equally lauded for the very same thing, as it was precisely as a result of that unsavory war, that America got Texas and huge territories previously owned by Mexico, including present-day New Mexico, Arizona, and California. For these immensely important acquisitions, President Polk has received considerably higher grades than he may otherwise have deserved. But, as far as we are concerned, we are done with him.

There was one more name during this time period, who happens to be America’s President #7, and the name is Andrew Jackson. Having received remarkably high marks in national historical polls, from #6 to #14 in the presidential rankings, he still remains one of the nation’s most beloved presidents, and is, of course, the familiar face on the twenty-dollar bill. The secret of his immense popularity is quite simple: Jackson was an unabashed populist and demagogue, and in his case it worked.

I have no doubt that for several important reasons Andrew Jackson deserves a high historical valuation and placement. But there are also huge negatives and a radical departure from the past, in his case, which do not make him a darling in my eyes. For this reason I have refused him an otherwise natural place in the opening continuity of the first seven American presidents. There is a gaping chasm between him and the last of the six, John Quincy Adams. The latter can be clearly identified with the “old guard” and with the principles of the basically elitist Jeffersonian Democracy, with its explicit fear of the majority ‘mob’ rule. What Jackson represents is that dreaded type of democracy, which historians have called “Jacksonian Democracy.”

The reader cannot expect me however to proceed with my “Jacksonian” notes within the generic context of the present entry. Good or bad, Jackson was an important American president, a milestone of sorts, and, as such, he deserves a separate individual entry of his own, with the predictable title Old Hickory.