158:. Jackson sided with Madison's view and felt that Jefferson's broad view of the spending power was not enough to justify passage of the bill before him. One of Jackson's main arguments against the bill was the project's provincial nature. It was understood that Congress could only fund projects which benefited the nation as a whole, but the Maysville project was a "purely local matter:"
108:, in which the court confirmed the power to regulate commerce among the states including those portions of the journey which lay within one state or another. Additionally, the road connected the interior of Kentucky to the Ohio River, and therefore served as the main artery for the transportation of goods. Kentucky Representative
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supporters who had no need for canals or new roads. For
Jackson, this decision underscored his belief that the construction of roads and canals lay more within the realm of the states rather than the federal government. This belief in limiting the federal government's scope of action was to be one of
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Jackson was quick to clarify that this did not imply that he would approve of projects which were of "national" character. Even though there is not a constitutional argument to be made against this type of action, it would be unwise to do so at the time, given the public debt. Until the debt was paid
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system. Congress passed a bill in 1830 providing federal funds to complete the project. Jackson vetoed the bill on the grounds that federal funding of intrastate projects of this nature was unconstitutional. He declared that such bills violated the principle that the federal government should not be
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Some scholars argue that
Jackson's veto can be seen as largely driven by personal, rather than political motives, particularly given Jackson's approval of internal improvement bills with as much a local nature as the Maysville Road. Jackson's veto may have been one of the many manifestations of the
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While Henry Clay and the Whig Party lost the argument, the two positions represented by the
Maysville Road veto continued to face each other into the future. A route that closely approximated the surveyed right-of-way for the Maysville and Lexington Turnpike received substantial federal aid in the
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Because the
Maysville Road Project was of a local nature, the veto did not encounter resounding opposition in Congress. In fact, the veto would please voters in New York and Pennsylvania who were responsible for financing their own projects, and saw no reason to help fund similar projects in other
176:. It was seen as good policy to spend federal money on national improvements, as long as two conditions were met. First, they should be done pursuant to a general system of improvement, not by ad hoc legislation. Second, the Constitution should be amended to make clear the limits on federal power.
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It has no connection with any established system of improvements; is exclusively within the limits of a State, starting at a point on the Ohio River and running out 60 miles to an interior town, and even as far as the State is interested conferring partial instead of general
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The road designed to be improved is intended to intersect at the great national road in the State of Ohio. It connects itself also on each side with the Ohio River. These two connections most certainly and justly entitle it to the appellation of a national
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These arguments were all intended to illustrate the road's overwhelming national significance. Opponents responded that this line of argument would establish that every road was a national road; there would be no limit to federal power.
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Generally, Jackson supported internal improvements. During his first term, he sanctioned federal expenditures for transportation projects at a rate nearly double that of the expenditures under
President
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vetoed a bill that would allow the federal government to purchase stock in the
Maysville, Washington, Paris, and Lexington Turnpike Road Company, which had been organized to construct a road linking
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But gentlemen say, every inch of the
Maysville road is in the State of Kentucky. How can it be national? I answer, every inch of the Delaware Canal, sixteen miles in length, is in the State of
66:, such as the development of roads and bridges, argued that the federal government had an obligation to harmonize the nation's diverse, and often conflicting, sectional interests into an "
216:, in contrast to Jackson, supported both the 1830 and 1846 bills because they believed the national government had a responsibility to promote trade commerce and economic modernization.
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Supporters of the bill insisted on the project's national significance. This particular project was intended to be a part of a much larger interstate system extending from
74:. Some authors have described the motives behind the veto decision as personal, rather than strictly political. The veto has been attributed to a personal grudge against
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129:; and every inch of the Louisville Canal is in one county; nay, I believe in one city. How can they be national? Yet, Congress have subscribed for stock in both of them.
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411:
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Moreover, the federal government had provided funding for other intrastate projects when they benefited the rest of the nation. As
Representative Coleman stated:
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involved in local economic affairs. Jackson also pointed out that funding for these kinds of projects interfered with paying off the national debt.
98:. If the highway as a whole was of national significance, they argued, surely the individual sections must be as well. They looked to the
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50:(Maysville being located approximately 66 miles/106 km northeast of Lexington), the entirety of which would be in the state of
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154:, the "Father of the Constitution”, viewed this type of spending as unconstitutional, as evidenced by his veto of the
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Jackson believed that federal money should only be spent when carrying out
Congress' enumerated powers. President
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rivalry between
Jackson and Henry Clay, who was one of the major proponents of the Maysville Road as part of his
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229:. This aid and designation represented a reversal of the principles set forth by Jackson in his 1830 veto.
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made this argument regarding the road's connection to the rest of the nation:
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70:." Jackson's decision was heavily influenced by his Secretary of State
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and the construction of the Cumberland Road. In contrast, President
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employed a broad view of the spending power when he carried out the
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The Constitution in Congress: Democrats and Whigs, 1829-1861
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off, there would be no surplus to spend on these projects.
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occurred on May 27, 1830, when United States President
54:. Its advocates regarded it as a part of the national
308:Congressional Debates, 21st Congress, 1st Session.
296:Congressional Debates, 21st Congress, 1st Session.
284:Congressional Debates, 21st Congress, 1st Session.
272:Congressional Debates, 21st Congress, 1st Session.
204:, an admirer and follower of Jackson, vetoed the
274:p. 433-435 (Sen. Tyler). p. 831-833 (Rep. Polk).
225:20th century and would be designated as part of
367:History of the government of the United States
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343:The Rise and Fall of the American Whig Party
102:decision handed down six years before in
407:Transportation in Mason County, Kentucky
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372:Political history of the United States
412:Transportation in Lexington, Kentucky
188:states. It also appealed to Southern
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249:(Harper & Brothers, 1959) p. 52
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247:The Jacksonian Era: 1828-1848
332:(U of Chicago Press, 2005).
27:1830 US presidential action
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392:1830 in American politics
260:The New Nation: 1800-1845
245:Glyndon G. Van Deusen,
206:Rivers and Harbors Bill
82:, in Van Buren's case.
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298:p. 828 (Rep. Coleman)
286:p. 820 (Rep. Letcher)
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64:internal improvements
208:on similar grounds.
195:Jacksonian democracy
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402:Maysville, Kentucky
362:History of Kentucky
258:Charles M. Wiltse,
40:Lexington, Kentucky
32:Maysville Road veto
18:Maysville Road Veto
310:p. 831 (Rep. Polk)
200:In 1846 President
156:Bonus Bill of 1817
148:Louisiana Purchase
86:Debate in Congress
387:Roads in Kentucky
328:David P. Currie,
174:John Quincy Adams
96:Florence, Alabama
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36:Andrew Jackson
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233:References
214:Whig Party
210:Henry Clay
127:New Jersey
80:Erie Canal
76:Henry Clay
48:Ohio River
44:Maysville
212:and his
52:Kentucky
46:on the
117:work.
94:, to
42:, to
397:Veto
30:The
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