Jacksonian Democrats believed themselves to be "for the people," a government that fought for its citizens. This assertion however, has little evidence to back it up. In fact, Jackson did a number of things to cause people to call this claim into question. Apparently, Jackson vetoed a bill that supported personal interests of the government, and encouraged the different classes to fight each other in resentment. This statement made by a public official (Daniel Webster) gives rise to the question, was Jackson indeed a defender of the Constitution? One would think that Jackson would support workers rights and their liberties, but he didn't. He merely took after the people that were in direct contact with him, paying little attention to the citizens he was supposed to be governing. It almost seems that just getting elected was a goal for Jackson, a widely known egomaniac. He lost his first presidential bid in a close, controversial race between him and John Quincy Adams. Jackson screamed cheat, but it ended up being Jackson who was the cheat, the cheat to the people and the Constitution. He didn't uphold ideas of political democracy, he trampled over them, passing many laws that put restrictions on citizens. .
Economic opportunity was an idea that was present in the structure of American culture during the nineteenth century and before. However, how equal were these opportunities? Maybe the elite upper class believed they were receiving economic opportunity but what the lower class didn't necessarily feel the same way. The growing disparity between classes caused for many social and economic difficulties, including occasional riots . As much as Jackson and his followers preached, the best economic opportunities still went to white land-owning males. This just provokes the lower class citizens to feel as though they have no equal opportunity, just an empty promise. How stable could the economy have been to have a depression in 1819? Jackson attempted to complete this task but it turned out to be simply insurmountable.
