Andrew Johnson Research Paper

The Life and Presidency of Andrew Johnson

Andrew Johnson was the 17th president of the United States of America, and probably the worst of the time. He became president after the assassination of the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln and did not do a good job of carrying on his legacy. During the period in which President Lincoln was in the White House, the Civil War was raging between the North and South. Lincoln was a strong advocate of the civil rights of black Americans and did all he good to protect their freedoms. However, Andrew Johnson was not an advocate of Black rights and believed it each state's choice whether or not to free the black citizens, which caused a lot of controversy between Johnson and the public.

Andrew Johnson was born

When his mother, Elizabeth remarried, his step-dad set him and his brother up on an apprenticeship with a local tailor. Johnson and his Brother caved under the stress and pressure of this new occupation and ran away from their home. Johnson worked as an on-the-go tailor with his brother traveling all around North Carolina. He later returned home, and his family moved to Greeneville, Tennessee. There, he established a successful tailoring business and married Eliza McCardle in 1827.

In 1831 Andrew Johnson was elected mayor of Greeneville. He was a big supporter of the decision to not give blacks the right to vote and campaigned around the state about this topic, giving himself wide exposure. In 1835, he gained a seat in the Tennessee legislature and promoted his democratic ideals and promoted the rights of state. He was an anti-abolitionist, meaning he promoted slavery. In 1843, he became the first democrat to be elected for U.S congress and

Even in the beginning of President Johnson's term, it was obvious that he would not force Southern States to grant Blacks their freedom, which became very controversial to the Republican Party. They felt that giving Blacks their freedom and voting rights was essential to furthering their “political influence” in the South. During the absence of congress, in the first few months of his presidency, Johnson issued many amnesties to rebels who were willing to take an oath of allegiance. Because of this, many southerners were elected into office and promoted slavery. Congress in no way approved of what he was doing and made two new bills upon their return. The first bill, The Freedom Bureau, protected the rights of blacks in court, and the second bill, The Civil Rights Act, which claimed “all persons born in the U.S and not subject to any foreign power, excluding Indians not taxed” as citizens. This went against Johnson’s beliefs and he vetoed both bills, but congress over-ruled and both bills were passed. After many more acts were passed including one that denied him the right to remove federal officials, he turned to the public for support through a series of conferences. These conferences were a complete disaster where many a time he seemed to be intoxicated, and seemed to criticize and antagonize the public, instead