Badger practiced law in
North Carolina, was active in state politics, and served as a state
superior court judge. A supporter of
Andrew Jackson from the 1820s, he separated with him in the mid-1830s, became a leader of the Whig party and helped carry the Whigs to victory in the 1840 Presidential election. Upon taking office, President
William Henry Harrison appointed Badger as his
Secretary of the Navy, and he continued in that post for a few months (until September 1841, when he resigned to resume private practice) when
John Tyler succeeded to the Presidency upon Harrison's death (April 1841). Badger's brief term as Secretary was marked by efforts to strengthen the Navy in the face of tension with Great Britain, the establishment of the U.S.
Home Squadron, and growing interest in steamships. Badger resigned in September 1841, during a general cabinet shakeup. The resignation of several cabinet members, including Badger, resulted from Tyler's vetoing of two bills to create a new national bank, which the Whig party, led by
Henry Clay, supported. Badger was elected to the
U.S. Senate in 1846 to fill the unexpired term of
William Henry Haywood, Jr. and remained in office until 1855, after choosing not to run for re-election. While in the Senate, he supported the
Compromise of 1850. He was nominated by President
Millard Fillmore as an
Associate justice of the Supreme Court on January 3, 1853, to succeed
John McKinley. On February 11, 1853, the Senate voted to table a nomination, and the president withdrew it three days later. Badger's wealth grew throughout his political career; by 1860, he was worth an estimated $145,000 (~$ in ). He was a slave owner, enslaving twenty people. He was a Unionist during the secession crisis but thereafter supported the
Confederate war effort. ==Death and legacy==