U.S. Pres. Andrew Johnson's life and career examined
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An overview of Andrew Johnson.
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IC code: presvi017

Andrew Johnson rose to the presidency of the United States following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Johnson led the country through the end of the American Civil War and the restoration of the Union. He and Congress fought bitterly over Reconstruction legislation, and Johnson became the first president to be impeached.

Andrew Johnson was born in Raleigh, North Carolina, in 1808. Three years later, his father died after rescuing two men from drowning. The Johnson family was very poor, so Andrew did not attend school. At age 14, he was bound as a tailor’s apprentice with his older brother. Before long, the brothers got into trouble and ran away with two other apprentices. Bounties were placed on their heads, with Johnson’s employer offering a $10 reward for his return.

Johnson remained on the run for two years before returning to his family in 1826. They moved to Greeneville, Tennessee, where he opened a tailor shop. At age 18 he got married. His wife, Eliza, read to him while he worked and helped him improve his reading, writing, and general education.

Johnson became influential in Greeneville politics, first as an alderman and then as mayor. In 1835 he won election to the Tennessee state legislature, where he served for 8 years. He became a Jacksonian Democrat and championed the interests of poor mountaineers and farmers against the wealthy classes.

In 1842 Johnson was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he pushed for legislation that would have divided public lands in the West into small holdings for poor farmers. Johnson’s bills failed, but a federal Homestead Act eventually passed in 1862. Johnson returned to Tennessee in 1853 and was elected governor. He served two terms before winning election to the U.S. Senate.

By this time, the antislavery North and proslavery South had become sharply divided. In 1860 Abraham Lincoln – a Northern Republican – was elected president. In response, Southern states began to secede from the Union. When Tennessee seceded, Johnson refused to join the Confederacy. He was the only Southern senator who remained in his post. In 1862, with Tennessee back under federal control, President Lincoln appointed Johnson as military governor.

When Lincoln ran for reelection in 1864, the Republicans sought a vice presidential candidate who would appeal to voters outside their party. Johnson—a Democrat who had remained loyal to the Union—was their choice. The Republican ticket won the election easily.

Johnson took office as vice president in March 1865. One month later, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered, effectively ending the Civil War. But just as the country began to celebrate, another tragedy struck. President Lincoln was shot on April 14, 1865, and died the following morning.

Johnson rose to the presidency after just six weeks as vice president. He faced the unprecedented challenge of bringing the Southern states back into the Union. Many Congressmen – namely the Radical Republicans – blamed the South for the Civil War and demanded harsh measures against the defeated Confederacy. They also wanted to guarantee the political and civil rights of African Americans.

Johnson, however, was a firm believer in states’ rights. He favored lenient policies toward the Southern states and opposed efforts to empower blacks. During the rest of his presidency, Johnson struggled bitterly with Congress, vetoing 29 bills – more than double the number of any previous president. Nevertheless, Congress was able to pass several important laws over Johnson’s veto, including the Civil Rights Act of 1866. Congress also passed the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which granted citizenship and equal rights to African Americans.

Tensions between the president and the Radical Republicans continued to escalate. In 1868 Johnson attempted to fire his secretary of war, in violation of a law recently passed by Congress. The House of Representatives brought charges of impeachment against the president, but the Senate vote fell one short of removing him from office.

Johnson left office in 1869 and returned to Tennessee. He remained active in politics, and in 1875 he became the only ex-president to serve in the U.S. Senate. Johnson died only a few months into his term, on July 31, 1875.