The Cherokee at the time, above almost all other eastern Indian tribes in the US, were trying to make their society as compatible with the American society of the day as possible...and the reward was forced migration at the costs of thousands.
But that was not my point, my point was simple, a President can defy the judiciary . Jackson did and (whether we agree with it or not) he won out as regards his fight against the judiciary of his day.
Cool. That’s what I thought you were getting at.
BTW, I’m almost done with the book which includes this subject of The Cherokee removal. The peole quoted and included in the book are my ancestors. In reality, they were superior to their Georgian neighbors economically, religiously and intellectually, not that it did them a bit of good.
Here’s a snip:
“Perhaps Washington, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were only tantalizing us when they encouraged us in the pursuit of agriculture and government. Why were we not told long ago that we could not be permitted to establish a government within the limits of any state?
The Cherokees have always had a government of their own. Nothing, however, was said when we were governed by savage laws.
Others say it is time for the Cherokees to submit to inevitable destiny. What Destiny? To be slandered and then butchered?
Yes, this is the bitter cup prepared for us by a republican and religious government. We shall drink it to the dregs.”
Elias Boudinot (Buck Watie), 1829 , Editor, The Cherokee
Phoenix Newspaper, New Echota, Cherokee Nation, Georgia