He was the unanimous choice for president George Washington John Adams Thomas Jefferson James Madison James Monroe John Q. Adams Andrew Jackson When the Constitution was ratified in 1789, George Washington was elected America’s 1st president: He was the unanimous choice for president Washington helped shape the new nation & created precedents for future presidents & leaders

Washington’s 1st Term: 1789-1793

Washington as President During his 1st term, Washington helped shape the new nation: He approved the Judiciary Act of 1789 which created federal courts Congress created the Treasury, State, War, Justice Departments Created the 1st cabinet (group of advisors who head departments) Focused on the U.S. economy

Washington’s Cabinet Alexander Hamilton, Secretary of Treasury Henry Knox, Secretary of War George Washington, President Edmund Randolph, Attorney General Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State

Hamilton & Jefferson were the most influential of the cabinet members but they had different views on the role of gov’t for the new nation

Comparing the Ideals of Hamilton & Jefferson Activity History Alive! Activity 4.1

Hamilton vs. Jefferson: The Nature of Human Beings People are motivated by self-interests Only the “elite” should govern Jefferson The “common” man can make good decisions Corruption occurs when power is in the hands of the “elite”

Hamilton vs. Jefferson: The Best Type of Government Powerful national government Articles of Confederation was too weak Jefferson Power should remain with state governments Keep the national gov’t small

Hamilton vs. Jefferson: Political Party & Its Ideas Federalist Strong national government & fewer states rights Jefferson Republican (Democratic-Republican) Limited national government & more states rights

Hamilton vs. Jefferson: Ideal Economy Economy based on industry Jefferson Economy based on small, independent farmers

Hamilton vs. Jefferson: View on the Constitution Supported the Constitution Constitution can be “loosely” interpreted with the “necessary & proper” clause Jefferson Supported the Constitution because of the Bill of Rights Constitution should be strictly interpreted Powers not given to the national gov’t are reserved for state gov’ts

Thomas Jefferson Jefferson feared a strong national gov’t & wanted power left to the states in order to protect liberty: He saw America as a nation of farmer-citizens & feared rule by the “wealthy elite” As Sec of State, Jefferson favored close ties with France, especially when the French Revolution began in 1789 5 5

Alexander Hamilton Hamilton thought a strong national gov’t was best for America: Hamilton wanted leaders to come from the “educated elite” He wanted the U.S. to develop like England (trade & industry) As Sec of Treasury, he created a Financial Plan to grow U.S. industry, pay off national debts, & expand the economy 4 4

Hamilton’s Financial Plan Components of the Financial Plan: The national gov’t should take all the state debts (assumption) & pay them off at full value (funding) Create a “Bank of the U.S.” to regulate American currency Create a “protective tariff” on British manufactured goods to get people to buy American goods Jefferson opposed the “BUS” because it would give too much power to bankers & the Constitution did not give Congress the power to create a national bank This was the only part of Hamilton’s financial plan that was not approved Funding & assumption passed, but only after a deal was made with Southern states to move the national capital to Virginia (Washington D.C.) It passed when Hamilton used the “Elastic Clause” (Article 1, Section 8) to argue that the bank was “necessary & proper” 7 7

Disagreements between Hamilton & Jefferson led to the 1st American political parties

Washington’s 2nd Term: 1793-1797 Show Washington video here

Whiskey Rebellion Washington faced a big challenge in 1794 with the Whiskey Rebellion: 7,000 farmers marched on Pittsburgh to protest a whiskey tax Washington viewed the protest as a threat to safety & led the U.S. army to put down the rebellion With the Constitution, the national gov’t was strong enough to end the threat (the gov’t of the Articles couldn’t end Shays’ Rebellion) Political polarization was further intensified by the outbreak of popular protests in western Pennsylvania against Hamilton's financial program. To help pay off the nation's debt, Congress passed a tax on whiskey. On the frontier, the only practical way to transport and sell surplus corn was to distill it into whiskey. Frontier farmers regarded a tax on whiskey in the same way as American colonists had regarded Britain's stamp tax. By 1794, western Pennsylvanians had had enough. Some 7000 frontiersmen marched on Pittsburgh to stop collection of the tax. Determined to set a precedent for the federal government's authority, Washington gathered an army of 15,000 militamen to disperse the rebels. In the face of this overwhelming force, the uprising collapsed. The new government had proved that it would enforce laws enacted by Congress. Thomas Jefferson took a very different view of the "Whiskey Rebellion." He believed that the government had used the army to stifle legitimate opposition to unfair government policies. 17 17

The presence of Washington & 13,000 soldiers was enough to end the Whiskey Rebellion

American Neutrality Washington faced another serious challenge when war broke out between England & France in 1793 Americans were divided: Hamilton supported Britain Jefferson supported France In 1793, Washington issued the Proclamation of Neutrality because the best way to protect American interests was to stay out of the fight Why would some Americans want to support France? Why would some Americans want to support Britain? 10 10

The French Revolution led to war between England & France

Washington's Farewell Address In 1796, Washington chose not to run for a 3rd term; This created the two-term precedent for presidents Washington’s Farewell Address: Warned against political parties Warned against “entangling alliances” with foreign nations (led to the precedent of non-intervention in foreign affairs) 18 18

The Adams Presidency 1797-1801

George Washington John Adams Thomas Jefferson James Madison James Monroe John Q. Adams Andrew Jackson Former vice-president John Adams defeated Thomas Jefferson in the presidential election of 1796 Show Adams video here Former VP John Adams (Federalist) Thomas Jefferson (Republican)

“Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!” The Adams Presidency The war between England & France caused Adams problems: France was mad that we did not ally with them to fight England & started to seize merchant ships Adams sent diplomats to France but 3 unnamed French officials (“X”, “Y”, “Z” ) demand bribes Many thought the XYZ Affair was reason to go to war with France, but Adams kept his cool “Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!” Adams prepared for war & created the Dept of Navy, but his continued negotiations with the French paved the way for Jefferson’s Louisiana Purchase in 1803

The Alien and Sedition Acts Adams’ handling of the conflict with France led to criticisms from the Democratic-Republicans The Federalists in Congress passed the Alien & Sedition Acts: Made it a crime to criticize the president or gov’t leaders This attack on free speech backfired & badly damaged the Federalist Party & Adams 22 22

Virginia & Kentucky Resolves Jefferson & James Madison were outraged & wrote the Virginia & Kentucky Resolves in 1798-99: Presented a “states’ rights” argument suggesting that states could ignore (nullify) national laws that they viewed as unfair The “states’ rights” & “nullification” arguments will be used by the South to secede from the USA during the Civil War in 1860-61 23 23

The “Revolution of 1800” By 1800, President Adams & the Federalist Party were wounded: Jefferson defeated Adams for the presidency beginning nearly 30 years of dominance by the Democratic-Republicans This election marked the first time power was transferred from one party to another 25 25