What was the
Spoils System?
The Spoils System was
based on the policy of removing political opponents from federal
offices and replacing them with party loyalists. The Spoils System
policy had been adopted on a limited scale by previous presidents,
notably Thomas Jefferson. Andrew Jackson extended the use of
the Spoils System believing that partisan (supporters) loyalty was a
more important qualification for a job than competence or merit.
Andrew Jackson and the
Spoils System
The Spoils System
advocated by Andrew Jackson was based on rotation in office and
rewarding loyal supporters. Jackson had good cause in placing so
much importance on loyalty. He had experienced extensive personal
and political disloyalty during his early presidency through the
Peggy Eaton affair which had
led him to request the resignation of his entire cabinet, including
his vice president. After the purge he established a new official
cabinet, but only took advice from loyal friends and supporters who
were referred to by his enemies as the
Kitchen
Cabinet.
How did the
Spoils System develop? Rotation in Office
The Spoils System was also based on the democratic
principle that anyone who held an office for too long became corrupt
and led Andrew Jackson to advocate rotation in office. Jackson was a
'man of the people' and firmly believed that there were too many
aristocratic, career politicians
in the upper-class Congress that were out of touch with the American
public. He adopted the policy of removing the old
officeholders and replacing them with those recommended by the
winning candidates in his party. The implementation of the system of
rotation in office, and Jackson's belief in loyalty, evolved into
the spoils system.
The
Spoils System and Jackson's Presidency: Van Buren, Buchanan and
Marcy
Andrew Jackson had the
loyal support of two future presidents; Martin Van Buren and James
Buchanan. He also had the support of Senator William Learned Marcy
of New York. These three powerful men had built up strong party
machines in their states. In one of his speeches Marcy said "...to
the victor belong the spoils." Martin Van Buren, Buchanan and Marcy
saw nothing wrong in the principle that to the victors belong the
spoils of victory. So when they won they rewarded their party
workers with government offices. The Spoils System was now
established in the national government of Andrew Jackson. Supporter
of Andrew Jackson descended on Washington, there were so many that
the boarding houses and hotels could not accommodate all of them.
Many camped out in public squares and the parks of the capital.
During his presidency nearly 1000 officeholders were removed and
replaced by the appointments of political partisans.
Arguments for the
Spoils System
The arguments for the Spoils System
were:
● It ensured loyal,
enthusiastic and cooperative supporters of the presidential
administration in the civil service
● It maintained an active
party organization by offering loyal supporters occupational
rewards
Arguments against the
Spoils System
The arguments against
the Spoils System were:
● Appointments to office
were based on the needs of the party, rather than a person's
qualifications or skills to do the job
● The Spoils System led
abuses of political power designed to benefit and enrich the
ruling party
Spoils System
The info about the Spoils System provides interesting facts and
important information about this important event that occured during the presidency of the 7th President of the United States of America.
What was the Significance of the
Spoils System?
The significance of the Spoils System
was:
● It became a 'custom and
practice' of future presidential administrations
● Inefficiencies and
corruption were bred by the Spoils system
● The Spoils system reached
astonishing proportions in the administration of President
Ulysses S. Grant, refer to
Grantism, and the Civil Service Commission was
established in 1871
● A merit based civil
service system would not be implemented by the federal
government until the
Pendleton Federal Civil Service Act of 1883
Examples of Corruption and the
Spoils System for kids
Examples of corruption
and the Spoils System in future administrations included:
● Bribes and kickbacks were
demanded in exchange for lucrative contracts
● The siphoning of public
funds
● Public projects granted at
very low prices
● Favoring party supporters
in areas like the levying of taxes.
● Favoring party supporters
in areas like the prosecution of law cases and the levying of taxes.
Spoils System for kids - President Andrew Jackson Video
The article on the
Spoils System provides an overview of one of the Important issues of his presidential term in office. The following
Andrew Jackson video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 7th American President whose presidency spanned from March 4, 1829 to March 4, 1837.
Spoils System
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Interesting Facts about
Spoils System for kids and schools
●
Key events
Spoils System for kids
●
The Spoils System, a Important
event in US history
●
Andrew Jackson Presidency from March 4, 1829 to March 4, 1837
●
Fast, fun, interesting
timeline
about Important events
●
Foreign & Domestic
policies of President Andrew Jackson
● Spoils System for schools,
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