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Running RADICAL head: RADICAL REPUBLICANS
Allen Brown February 27, 2010 HIS 103 American History Pre 1877 Radical Republicans The post Civil War reconstruction plan of the Radical Republicans was vastly different than the plan of the President, Andrew Johnson. Andrew Johnsons plan resembled that of former, Many feel that
and assassinated President Abraham Lincoln.
Lincoln would have dealt with congress very easily and his plan would have gone into action and worked. Johnson on the other
hand was widely considered a push over and his plan was trampled on by congress and the Republicans. The republicans plan for The
reconstruction revolved heavily around their agenda.
republicans agenda was focused around; protective tariffs, a pro
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business national banking system, liberal land policies for settlers, and federal aid for railroad development. Their plan
for reconstruction included three main factors; revenge, freedom, and politics. (Online Highways , 2001) Andrew Johnsons plan envisioned several things that did not sit well with the republicans in congress. Johnson wanted to
offer a pardon to southern participates in the war under the considerations that; one, they were not offices of the southern armies, and secondly, they did not own properties in excess of $20,000. Also on Johnsons plan was the idea that a state needed Along
to abolish slavery before being readmitted to the union.
with completely abolishing slavery a state would have to repeal its succession ordinance before it would be considered for readmission. Johnsons process began while congress was not in
secession, once it reconvened it refused to sit the southern representatives thus causing yet another congress verses the president deadlock. (State Library of North Carolina, 2009) The Radical Republicans, motivated by their own agenda, had three main goals for reconstruction; revenge, freedom, and politics. Revenge, the republicans had a desire punish to the
southerners for causing the war, they did not agree with Johnsons plan to pardon guilty people. Freedom ties heavily
into politics in the eyes of the republicans; they thought that
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if they pushed for freedom then newly freedmen would have to vote for them thus keeping their strong hold on congress. The
thought of the republicans was that if the south were to go back to the hands of the democrats the programs of their agenda; tariffs, national banking, liberal land policies, and railroad development, would suffer or be cut. (Simkins, 1997) The Radical Republicans finalized their reconstruction plan with the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson. Some theorist
believe that the Republican Party was so focused on their own agenda that they had Lincoln assassinated knowing that Johnson would be easy to just walk right over and eventually get rid of. If this was their plan they executed it to perfection; but at what cost? By the end of the reconstruction democrats and
liberal republicans rallied together against the radical republicans. By 1872 the radicals were divided and in the
election of 1874 they were shown the door as the anti-radical democrats retook control of congress. The radicals would split,
part joining the Stalwart faction of the GOP and the rest joining the Half-Breeds. This, a division of power and unity,
left the radicals powerless for the most part but their impact would be lasting and consequential.
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Bibliography Online Highways . (2001). Radical Republicans Reconstrution Plan. Retrieved 2010, from US History : http://www.u-shistory.com/pages/h180.html Simkins, J. (1997). Radical Republicans. Retrieved 2010, from Sparticus Educational: http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USASradical.htm State Library of North Carolina. (2009). Andrew Johnson. Retrieved 2010, from eNCyclopedia: North Carolina Online Library: http://statelibrary.ncdcr.gov/nc/bio/public/johnson.htm