John Adams' Presidency

The best thing John Adams did

hand over power to Thomas Jefferson

XYZ Affair (1797)

Incident that precipitated an undeclared war with France when three French officials demanded that American emissaries pay a bribe before negotiating disputes between the two countries.

Quazi War

Undeclared war at sea between the Americans and the French; France proposed new negotiations; signed by the two counties; in this agreement the United States gave up all claims against France for damages to American shipping, and in return, France released the United States from the treaty.

Alien and Sedition Acts

Series of four laws enacted in 1798 to reduce the political power of recent immigrants and allowed the arrest of people who criticized the government

Revolution of 1800

Electoral victory of Democratic Republicans over the Federalists, who lost their Congressional majority and the presidency. The peaceful transfer of power between rival parties solidified faith in America's political system.

John Adam's Vice President

Thomas Jefferson

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

Written anonymously by Jefferson and Madison in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts, they declared that states could nullify federal laws that the states considered unconstitutional.

Midnight Judges

The 16 judges that were added by the Judiciary Act of 1801 that were called this because Adams signed their appointments late on the last day of his administration.

Marshall Court

Chief Justice John Marshall; established the power of the federal government over the states; supremacy clause; supported by McCulloch v. Maryland and Gibbons v. Ogden

John Adams political party

Federalist