Andrew Johnson Essay Example

the Senate by only a single vote. He was the only President without any schooling and didn't learn to read until his wife taught him at the age of seventeen. "There are some who lack confidence in the integrity and capacity of the people to govern themselves. To all who entertain such fears I will most respectfully say that I entertain none If man is not capable, and it not to be trusted with the government of himself, is he to be trusted with the government of others Who, then, will govern? The answer must be, man - for we have no angels in the shape of men, as yet, who are willing to take charge of our political affairs."

Andrew Johnson in 1853
Election into Office

In the 1840's and 50's, as a member of the House of Representatives and the Senate, he advocated a homestead bill to provide a free farm for the poor man. Congress passes the Tenure of the Office Act, which stripped the President of the power to remove federal officials without the Senate's approval, and in 1867, established a military Reconstruction program to enforce political and social rights for southern blacks.

Vice President

Johnson took the oath of office for Vice President in March of 1865. Soon after, Lincoln was assassinated at the Ford theatre only a month after Johnson became Vice President. Johnson became president on April 15th, 1865. Lincoln didn't speak a negative word about Johnson even when he arrived to the inauguration drunk while embarrassing himself, his family and friends, and most of all Lincoln. When people suggested to Lincoln about resigning Johnson as Vice President, Lincoln good-humoredly silenced them

with the remark, "I've known Andy a great many years and he ain't no drunkard."

Cabinet Members

Secretary of State: William H. Seward
Secretary of War: Edwin Stanton, Ulysses Grant and John Schofield
Postmaster General: William Dennison and Alexander Randall
Secretary of the Interior: John Usher, James Harlan and Orville Browning
Secretary of the Treasury: High McCulloch
Attorney General: James Speed, Henry Stanbery and William Evarts
Secretary of the Navy: Gideon Welles

Role and Presidential Power

After President Lincoln's death, President Johnson continued to reconstruct the former Confederate States while Congress was not in session. He pardoned all who would take an oath of allegiance but required leaders and men of wealth to obtain special Presidential pardons. By the time Congress met in December, most southern states were reconstructed and slavery was being abolished.

John didn't waste any time when he got into the White House, he had specific goals to accomplish and he wasn't going to let anything stand in his way. The circumstances that presented his opportunity would be the Civil War, some sort of resolution had to come out of it and Johnson tried to make that happen. The use of the Presidential Power was a big issue, it seems as though Congress and President Johnson were sort of going back and forth with cheap shots. Whenever Johnson would have a novel idea, Congress would find a way to put it down. I believe it impacted the Country in a positive way because if Congress wouldn't have made various laws or amendments, Johnson would have been able to do whatever his heart desired which wasn't the entire right thing.

Three Major Achievements

The most valuable achievement of President Johnson was the acquisition of Alaska on

March 30th of 1867. Secretary of the State, William Seward bought Alaska from Russia for seven million dollars. This negotiation with Russia wasn't easy and took a lot of effort, time and money.

Another major achievement that Johnson performed was the Reconstruction after the Civil War and abolishing slavery in the south. He added to our Constitution, the 13th amendment which would abolish slavery and the 14th amendment for equal protection of all citizens.
Andrew Johnson didn't have too many major achievements during his term although he was dedicated to the Reconstruction after our country faced four long years of hardship with the Civil War.

Controversy

Of course there were many controversies while Johnson was in office but the major one would have to be when he got impeached. While leading the House of Representatives to impeach him in 1868, he became the first President to be impeached. He was subsequently acquitted by a single vote in Senate. Wide differences arising between the President and the Congress, a resolution for his impeachment passed the House of Representatives February 24, 1868.

On March 5th, 1868 a court of impeachment was organized in the United States Senate to hear charges against the President. Eleven articles were set out in the resolution and the trial before the Senate lasted for three months, the conclusion of which he was acquitted by a vote of thirty-five for conviction to nineteen for acquittal, the necessary two-thirds vote for impeachment not having been obtained.

I think the impeachment had an effect on President Johnson but he didn't let it get to him nor did he resign before his term was over. He carried out the rest of his

term in an orderly manner. He was unsuccessful as a candidate for election to the U.S. Senate in 1869, and also to the House of Representatives in 1872. He was elected as a democrat to the United States Senate and served seven months until his death.