.
However, we may agree on one recent historical claim: that Andrew
Jackson tended to address enemies by killing them. As shown in the video
below, Gingrich embraced this approach as a campaign pledge — eclipsing
prior campaign
Putting aside a tendency to
shoot enemies in duels,
Jackson was infamous for his treatment of Native Americans. This
included the disgraceful treatment of the Cherokee nation where they
were forced to walk from lands east of the Mississippi River to
present-day Oklahoma. The “Trail of Tears” led to the death of thousands
of men, women, and children — an act that bears striking resemblance to
acts of alleged genocide.
Jackson was unwilling to live by a ruling of the Supreme Court in 1832
in favor of the Cherokee (Worcester v. Georgia). Chief Justice John
Marshall ruled that the Cherokee Nation was sovereign, making the
removal laws invalid. Jackson nevertheless pushed the tribe from its
land through federal agents — the
very type of disregard for Supreme Court authority that Gingrich previously embraced. For Native Americans, this is akin to citing the man behind the
Bataan Death March as a model for leadership. Jackson also imposed military rule — and
authoritarian measures — before the Battle of New Orleans. Jackson was a
remarkable man in many respects but he is also responsible for
outrageous acts, particularly against Native American tribes.