Launching a New Nation Chapter 8

Washington takes Office The Capital of the United states was New York City George Washington traveled there in April of 1789. Washington was inaugurated on April 30, 1789 He was anxious and knew that his actions would set a precedent.

Washington takes Office Congress and the President had to put together a working government. The Congress passed laws to set up three departments for the Executive Branch (The President) The Department of the Treasury, Department of State and Department of war Each was headed by a person chosen by the President

Washington takes Office The President appointed an attorney general to advise him on legal issues Alexander Hamilton was the Secretary of Treasury Thomas Jefferson was the Secretary of State Henry Knox was the Secretary of War Edmund Randolph was the Attorney General Today the Presidents advisors are known as the Cabinet.

Washington takes Office The Judiciary Act of 1789 set up for the Supreme Court of 6 justices Under the Supreme Court were 3 circuit Courts and 13 district courts The job of the federal courts was to hear appeals from the state court John Jay was the First Chief Justice of the Supreme Court

Washington takes Office After the Revolution the federal government owed $52 million This was owed in bonds Speculators bought bonds from people because the people thought that they were not going to worth money

Washington takes Office Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of Treasury came up with a plan to solve the problem The US government would agree to pay all federal and state debts The US government would open a national bank for depositing government goods The US government would start a high tax on imported goods

Washington takes Office Hamilton wanted to prove to other countries that the US would pay back their debts Several southern states did not think they should have to pay the federal debt because they already paid off their state debt After debate, the Southerners would help pay back the debt In return the capital would be in the South

Washington takes Office Hamilton created a bank that would hold funds and issue paper money Thomas Jefferson fought against the bank saying it was Unconstitutional The bank was created 1791 Hamilton imposed a tariff on goods It would raise money for the government

Washington takes Office In 1791, Congress started a tax on whiskey This was supposed to raise money for the government It led to a revolt because many farmers made money by turning corn into whiskey.

Washington takes Office In 1794, officials in western PA tried to collect taxes The Farmers rebelled and burned down the home of the tax collector This gained popularity and a mob marched throughout Pittsburgh and was known as the Whiskey Rebellion Washington sent the militia to break it up This was an example of the new government’s strength.

The Birth of Political Parties The writers of the Constitution did not believe that political parties were going to develop People instead spoke of factions instead of political parties Both Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton both disliked factions, they believed that it would bring chaos By 1790, Jefferson and James Madison formed on political party and Alexander Hamilton formed the other

The Birth of Political Parties The Republicans argued that the federal government was growing too strong under Washington and that power should be at the state level Federalists believed that there needed to be a strong central government to make the country work The country became torn, Hamilton claimed that Washington was a federalist Newspapers claimed that Federalists wanted to betray the constitution and bring back the king

The Birth of Political Parties Federalists also favored a national bank and tariff, close ties with England Republicans did not want a bank or tariff and wanted ties with France In 1796, George Washington would not run for a third term, this set a precedent

The Birth of Political Parties Republican candidate was Thomas Jefferson Federalists candidate was John Adams In 1796-President and Vice president did not run together, the person who got the most votes became president and the person who got the second most was vice president Adams became president and Jefferson became vice president This led to tensions

Troubles at home and Abroad Ten years after the Treaty of Paris, British soldiers were still in the North West Territory. The Native Americans tried to keep their lands too Many American leaders believed that the future depended on settling western lands The officials tried to force the natives to sell their land They succeeded in buying most of Kentucky and part of Tennessee

Troubles at home and Abroad Washington sent troops to end the native attacks on settlers The Natives defeated the military twice before Washington sent General Anthony Wayne. Wayne won against the Natives at the Battle of Fallen Timbers-Named this because of all the fallen trees

Troubles at home and Abroad The French Revolution began in 1789 Most Americans supported the French at first because it was similar to what they went through But then the French Revolution got much more violent with the “reign of terror” 17,000 people, including the king and queen were killed.

Troubles at home and Abroad By 1793, France and England were at war, Washington wanted to remain Neutral But still trade with both sides-Unfortunately, both countries began to stop American ships and seize their cargo. The British began impressment of sailors Hamilton urged the president to stay friendly with Britain because the US depended on them for imports

Troubles at home and Abroad John Jay went to London to form a treaty with Britain The US would pay its debts to British merchants and the British would pay for the ships it has seized They would also withdraw from the Northwest Territory They refused to recognize the US right to trade with France and would not stop impressment The Jay’s Treaty was approved by the senate

Troubles at home and Abroad In 1796, Washington decided to retire, he left pieces of advice He warned against political parties and thought they would divide the nations

Troubles at home and Abroad He said that the nation should remain neutral and not get involved with European affairs Things Washington accomplished The Unites States now had a Federal Government The economy was improving Washington had avoided war The British had been forced to leave the Northwest Territory

The Presidency of John Adams When Adams became president, the French were angered by US neutrality Jay’s Treaty with England only increased tensions

The Presidency of John Adams In 1797, Adams sent three men to France-They were met with French agents demanding that the US pay a bribe of $250,000 They also wanted several million dollars The Americans refused The Bribe became public and the French agents names were kept secret This was called the XYZ Affair

The Presidency of John Adams Because of the XYZ Affair, Federalists demanded that Adams ask Congress to declare war on France Adams asked Congress to increase the size of the Army and rebuild the Navy He also created a separate department of the Navy

The Presidency of John Adams Between 1798 and 1800, the US fought an undeclared naval war with France To avoid real war, Adams sent a new mission to France Napoleon Bonaparte, Frances leader, was fighting a war in Europe and agreed to stop seizing American ships. Although Adams had avoided war, his own Federalist Party disapproved with him

The Presidency of John Adams The Mistrust in France led to a mistrust of Immigrants The Alien Act was passed saying that a person had to live in the US for 14 years before becoming a citizen, instead of 5 years The Sedition Act was passed putting a limit on free speech- It was a crime to speak out against the President, Congress or Government

The Presidency of John Adams The Republicans denounced the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Problem was that the Supreme Court was not fully established and did not know how to make a law unconstitutional.

The Presidency of John Adams James Madison and Thomas Jefferson led the campaign toward the power of the Supreme Court They said that states had the right to declare laws unconstitutional The Sedition Act expired in 1801 After this, the Supreme Court could nullify the laws passed by Congress The differences between states rights and federal rights became a problem after this.