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Judging Andrew Jackson

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Andrew Jackson has some big hair and hints of big attitude on the twenty dollar bill.

In life — in the Tennessee woods, in war, in the White House — he was bigger than that. A brawler, a dueler, an infamous lover. The first populist president, who brought the common man, literally, into the White House and made the American presidency imperial.

Andrew Jackson had a temper. He was the first president targeted for assassination, and the only one who fought back and attacked his assailant!

He drew lines Barack Obama will still live with. He took on special interests and big money. He flexed America’s military muscle at home and abroad. He drove slaves and exiled Indians.

Newsweek’s Jon Meacham unpacks Old Hickory’s colorful legacy in a big new biography. This hour, On Point: The age of Jackson.

You can join the conversation. What do you know about the man behind the face of the $20 bill? Can you imagine a commander-in-chief who grew up ready to duel? What can we learn here as a new president takes the stage?Guest:

Joining us from New York is Jon Meacham, editor of Newsweek. He’s author of the New York Times bestsellers “Franklin and Winston: An intimate Portrait of an Epic Friendship” and “American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation.” His new biography is "American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House."

Read an excerpt from "American Lion."

This program aired on November 21, 2008.

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