Donald Trump is a big Andrew Jackson fan - here's how the 7th president of the United States ran the country

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Jackson Trump

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Trump even added a portrait of Jackson to the Oval Office.

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During his presidency, Andrew Jackson's populist rhetoric and popularity with "the common man" earned him the nickname "King Mob."

Today, he seems to have one new addition to his fan base.

President Donald Trump has placed a portrait of the seventh US president in the Oval Office and criticized the decision to replace the seventh president's portrait on the $20 bill with one of Harriet Tubman. In one interview, Trump even speculated that Jackson might have even been able to stop the Civil War from breaking out, calling him "a very tough person" with a "big heart."

The statement attracted criticism, with critics noting that Jackson was an unrepentant slaveholder himself.

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The controversy over "Old Hickory" isn't new. He's been a divisive figure since his presidency, attracting condemnation for his forced and bloody removal of the Cherokee from their homelands, his status as a slave-holder, his penchant for dueling and violent threats, and what some consider a tyrannical bent. However, Jackson usually fares well in presidential rankings, coming in at number 18 in CSPAN's 2017 list. Supporters tend to cite his populism and advocacy for poorer Americans as positive points in his legacy. For more details on Jackson's life and legacy, don't miss Business Insider's previous report on the statesman.

"Jackson is widely respected by many Americans," says Columbia University history professor and "The Fiery Trial" author Eric Foner. "On the other hand, there are those who criticize him strongly because of his policy vis-a-vis Native Americans and slavery. If Trump knows about American history, that's a good thing. I don't care about who he's talking about - Jackson, Lincoln, the Roosevelts, whoever, Reagan. The problem is, he's resurrecting Jackson without any real knowledge of who Jackson was or what Jackson did. So that's a kind of fake history, to go along with fake news."

With that in mind, here's what Jackson's leadership style looked like during his two terms as president: