Jacksonian democracy came about during a time of dramatic change in America. The Jackson democrats, whose influence spanned several decades in the early 19th century, attempted to strengthen the power of the poor lower classes while weakening the influence of the rich upper class. Economically, they benefited from governing during a time of rapid technological advances in transportation that fueled commerce and helped the common man. Politically, they invested power into an overwhelmingly powerful executive branch. The Jacksonian democrats saw themselves as saviors of the common people and ruled via a powerful central executive who attempted to destroy aristocracy in America. However, they were unusually wealthy, they only supported equality between white men, they enacted disastrous economic policies, and they disregarded the capability of the federal government. Further, they did not introduce democracy in America, but rather merely used it and benefited from it.
Numerous advancements sped up the growth of the United States during the first half of the 19th century. A market economy evolved to replace the small-farm agricultural and artisan economy. Favorable economic conditions created by Jackson directly supported a switch to cash-crop agriculture and capitalist manufacturing while hurting merchant-based trading. Despite the prosperity and economic growth, a split was emerging between the industrializing, urban North, agrarian, rural South, and the expanding West. The Jacksonians passed the Tariff of 1828, which opened opportunity for western agriculture and New England manufacturing, but was hurtful to the South. As a result, Jackson became highly regarded among the working classes (Doc A) because they felt his policies allowed them to increase their capital gain and to make more profit off of their domestic goods. The South believed that the Tariff of 1838 was unconstitutional, and referred to it as the "Tariff of Abominations".
