Why were both Andrew Johnson and Woodrow Wilson frustrated as peacemakers?
Had opposition from within the government AND were uncompromising in nature,
AJ AND WW BOTH FRUSTRATED AS PEACEMAKERS AS THEY FACED OPPOSITION FROM WITHIN THE GOVERNMENT
ANDREW JOHNSON
· Had to deal with conflict within the Government.
o Radical Republicans led by Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner (in Senate)
o Was a moderate.
§ Passed Reconstruction Proclamation which disenfranchised certain leading Confederates.
· Republicans also angered when ex-Confederates, associated with the “lost cause”, returned to Congress. Included Alexander Stephens.
o PERSONALLY PARDONED by Johnson.
o Did not want to give up their dominance in Congress to favor the North, incl. Passing acts such as the Morrill Tariff, Pacific Railroad Act, and the Homestead Act.
o The South now had blacks count as 5/5 of a person (as opposed to the 3/5 compromise, leading to 12 more votes in Congress, 12 more presidential electoral votes than they previously enjoyed.
§ Great Republican fear that the Democrats in North would join with South and dismantle all econ programs and strike down once again against blacks.
· SWING AROUND THE CIRCLE
o Led to Republican domination of BOTH HOUSES of Congress.
o Resulted in Repub waving of the bloody shirt
· After Civil Rights, Congress dominated.
· Reconstruction Act divided the South into 5 military districts, disenfranchising former Confederates.
o While Johnson previously agreed to Lincoln’s 10% Plan and not to the Wade-Davis Bill as set out by Congress, the radical Republican Congress wanted the south to ratify the 14th Amendment upon re-entering the nation. Also required them to be granted full male suffrage.
· Civil Rights Act à 14th Amendment (prohibited any state from denying “Life, liberty, or property without due process & gave states choice to give black ppl vote or not be represented in Congress…meant to override Black Codes out of fear of Dem. Domination)
· Army Act which lowered presidential power as “commander in chief” of army.
o Violation of checks and balances.
· Passed the Tenure of Office Act and Johnson purposely removed Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.
o Later found to be not guilty, and Johnson ultimately agreed to stop obstructing Republican policies if he were to be allowed to remain in office.
§ Later the administration proved to be a figurehead (as a result of the opposition from Congress).
o 15th Amendment also used as a means by the Radical Republicans to remain in Congress (so that they would secure black votes).
§ Military Reconstruction also conflicted with the ruling of Ex Parte Milligan, which said that civilians could not be tried anytime by military courts when civil courts were opened.
§ By 1870 had southern governments had organized their governments to recognize the accorded full rights.
· But when federal troops left state, Redeemers would once again have Democratic South return to early Reconstruction age.
WOODROW WILSON
· League of Nations
o Attempted to establish this successfully and asked for “all or nothing” – did not want the extra strings attached by the Republicans in Congress who wanted to add protections to the sovereignty to US
§ Otherwise US would be morally obligated to help other nations attacked via collective security.
o Wilson refused to compromise and treaty might have been accepted if certain measures were taken to protect American sovereignty. Instead attempted to rally up popular support, resulting in his stroke.
o League of Nations undercut from beginning w/ refusal of mightiest power to join it.
o Would greatly fail in preventing Allies from starting WWII later on as they could just blame the US.\
· Wilson refused to compromise and treaty might have been accepted if certain measures were taken to protect American sovereignty. Instead attempted to rally up popular support, resulting in his stroke.
· During the Paris Peace Conference which discussed the Treaty of Versailles, opposition from Congress with the strong Republican Congress.
o Wilson refused to bring a Republican representative in his expedition to Paris to discuss the treaty.
o Anti-League Republicans led by Henry Cabot Lodge successfully prevented the ratification of the Treaty of Versailles without any changes (which was the flat out acceptance of the League of Nations), directly preventing this multi-nation alliance to have an effective start with the refusal of the US, strongest nation to join.
· Similarly, during Wilson’s presidency, he as frustrated by the conflict between imperialists (who had their ideas supported through Roosevelt’s big stick policy and Taft’s dollar diplomacy) and the isolationists.
o Difficulties in foreign policy.
§ After the arrest of American soldiers, Wilson stubbornly wanted to eliminate Huerta and sent a navy to Mexico to capture Veracruz. Despite later amendments made by the ABC Powers, would have bandito “Pancho” Villa attacking Americans, attempting to provoke war between Wilson and Carranza.
· Wilson would respond by dispatching John J. Pershing to quell the troops.
· WWI attempted to solve problem through diplomatic channels. In first term sought by all diplomatic means to maintain neutrality.
o Had to face growing public discontent after German sinking of Lusitania by a German U-Boat which led to a lot of protest. After sinking of American Sussex Wilson would issue an ultimatum to which German would respond with a pledge to stop unrestricted submarine attacks.
o After sinking of Lusitania, Americans very angered and brought eastern US closer to war. However, rest of country still had distaste for war.
BOTH FRUSTRATED AS PEACEMAKERS DUE TO THEIR PERSONAL IDEALS AND GOALS, PUTTING THEM AT ODDS WITH PUBLIC OPINION
ANDREW JOHNSON
- After assassination of Lincoln, he wasn’t of the same party as the Republicans in Congress as he previously was a War Democrat.
o Had separated himself from the Democrats, and was never accepted by the Republican party.
- Meanwhile the Republican party who had “won” the Civil War was determined to reconstruct South and run the country with the lack of compromise from Andrew Jackson.
· Johnson attempts to follow his predecessors with the Freedmen’s Bureau to cope with problem of free unskilled blacks.
o Led by Oliver O Howard, but as Johnson was previously governor of TN, would often veto attempts to strengthen the Bureau.
o Would continue to veto further bills attempting to revive the Freedmen’s Bureau.
· Racist, non-compromising views would eventually kill it in 1872.
· In response to Johnson’s veto of the Freedmen’s Bureau, would retaliate by attempting to pass the Civil Rights Bill, which gave blacks privilege of American citizenship and struck at Black Codes.
o Johnson would veto this measure partly due to his racist beliefs, though this time Congress would override his veto.
· He himself sanctioned southern regimes which passed the Black Codes
o When Southern regimes passed Black Codes or Jim Crow Laws which aimed to keep blacks a stable and subservient labor force, they kept blacks working under unfair “labor contracts”.
§ Prevented blacks from serving on a jury, mocked the ideal of freedom. Were almost just like the slave codes before the war.
§ Many became sharecroppers, which was economic slavery and did not contribute to peace in the south.
· Never was able to get public opinion on his side
o Lack of unity within the government. As Republican Congress attempted to pass 14th Amendment, which granted “due process” for the blacks.
§ Johnson told the “sinful eleven” to reject it, and all but TN would listen.
o As a result of his swinging around the circle, he instead increased the Radical Republicans majority in both houses of the Congress. Was unsuccessful as a vote getter, further reducing his power as president.
· WENT AGAINST the isolationist policies of the public.
o Purchase of Alaska by Secretary of State William H. Seward.
o Russia wanted to strengthen western hold against Britain, so sold it to America.
· Expansionist Seward’s purchase went against the public’s isolationist, anti-expansionist, economy-minded, Reconstruction-minded public. Dubbed “Walrussia” and “Seward’s Icebox”.
- Johnson primarily made it clear that he did not want to grant blacks the peace and favored the anti-black sentiment by the southern regimes. Sanctioned governments which passed the literacy test, poll tax, and grandfather clause.
o Pardoned high ranking CSA officials including Alexander Stephens who would be elected to Congress. Partly favored the redemption goal of southerners.
- Due to racist nature, and uncompromising nature, did not oppose the rise of the KKK, there was lynching the south and great anti-black sentiment in the South.
- Responsible for intimidating blacks and liberal whites.
o Derogatory terms such as Carpetbaggers (northerners who invested in the south) and scalawags (southerners who supported “northern” thinking) added to the sectional tension.
o Would fail to distribute land to blacks as only 5% of blacks owned land by 1880. Was not intent in giving rights to blacks.
· After the Emancipation Proclamation, it took place unevenly in Confederacy, with planters resisting emancipation as hard as they can.
WOODROW WILSON
· His ideals (like Johnson’s ideals in being a moderate and maintaining a moderate approach [as opposed vengeful approach] to Reconstruction) frustrated his peacemaking process.
o PUBLIC OPINION: After the bloody revolution which established Huerta as the president of Mexico, there was a mass migration of Mexicans to the US. More than millions of Spanish settled near the border and endangered American jobs as they took jobs as fruit pickers or miners., railway builders.
o Resulted in an angered public from jingoists including influential yellow journalist William Randolph Hearst.
o Wilson stood firm against public opinion of jingoists, saying that it was “perilous” to determine foreign policy “in the terms of material interest”.
- He aimed to uphold his ideals for democracy (though not necessarily remaining anti-jingoist) and ended up dispatching marines to Haiti and Cuba which was not peacemaking, but instead, as a result of these foreign uprisings, led to a frustration of his efforts at remaining peaceful.
- WWI
· Foreign confrontation German’s repeated violations of their “pledges” to 1) not sink neutral shipping, then 2) not sink neutral ships without warning until they finally said they will wage unrestricted submarine warfare.
o Ideals were to keep out of war as his campaign slogan in 1916 was “He kept us out of war”.
o Relations against Germans more tense as protests against Germany grew as Germany then renews unrestricted submarine warfare, frustrating his attempts at peace.
· Attempted to resolve through diplomatic channels, but continued to use a failed tactic of idealistic negotiations.
o Right to freedom of seas à Lusitania
§ Sussex Pledge broken
§ Zimmerman Telegram
§ Russian Bolshevik Revolution led to concerns of democracy.
§ Previously was “he kept us out of war”, not had to go against his own ideals of isolationism to go to war in WWI as well as declaration of unrestricted warfare by Germans.
· IDEALISM would also lead to lack of compromise and failure to get the Treaty of Versailles passed.
o Wanted: Fourteen Points
§ Freedom of the seas
§ End to making secret treaties
§ Reduction of nat’l armaments
§ Self determination
§ LEAGUE OF NATIONS
· But ended up with resistance from Henry Cabot Lodge, resulting in
o US not accepting the League of Nations, crippling it from the start.
o The points of Wilson’s proposal were too idealist that negotiations with the Big Four ended up with him giving up many of the points in order to secure the League of Nations which would fail.
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