Growing Pains

• The American population was doubling every 25 years in late 1700s

Washington for President

• Washington was unanimously elected as President of the United States by the Electoral College in 1789

  • Washington took oath of office on April 30, 1789 and established the cabinet

• Washington's cabinet consisted of the Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, and Secretary of War Henry Knox

Bill of Rights

• James Madison wrote the Bill of Rights and in 1791, helped get them passed by Congress

• The Judiciary Act of 1789 created the federal court system including the Supreme Court and also created the office of attorney general

• John Jay became the first Chief Justice

Hamilton Revives the Corpse of Public Credit

• Hamilton was determined to fix America’s financial system

• 1 of Hamilton’s first objectives was to strengthen the national credit

• Hamilton pushed for assumption which would make the federal government pay states’ debts

  • States with large debts such as Massachusetts, accepted Hamilton's proposal

  • States with small debts such as Virginia, didn’t want the government to assume state debts

• Hamilton's plan was passed by Congress in 1790

Customs, Duties, and Excise Taxes

• Hamilton believed that a national debt was good for the country as the more creditors the government owed money to, the more people would have a personal stake in its success

• Hamilton supported the first tariff law (1789) which imposed taxes on certain imports and brought in much-needed revenue for the government and protected small American industries

• Congress passed excises taxes on domestic items such as whiskey in 1791

Hamilton Battles Jefferson for a Bank

• Hamilton proposed a Bank of the United States that could print paper money and provide a stable national currency

• The bank would also be a place where the Treasury could deposit money

• Jefferson opposed the Bank, saying that it was unconstitutional as he felt that the states had the right to manage their own money

• For the bank, most of the opposition came from the south and most of the support came from the north

• Hamilton prevailed as the first Bank of the United States was created in 1791

• The bank’s charter lasted for 20 years with the bank being located Philadelphia

Mutinous Moonshiners in Pennsylvania

• The Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania (1794) was led by distillers who strongly opposed the 1791 excise tax on whiskey

  • The Whiskey Rebellion ended when President Washington sent in federal troops

• Federal troops faced no opposition and a strong message was sent by the government, stating that it would enforce the law

The Emergence of Political Parties

• When Washington took office, political parties hadn’t existed in America

• The personal feud between Jefferson and Hamilton developed into a political rivalry

• In the 1790s, Jefferson and Madison organized their opposition to the Hamiltonian program and with time this organized opposition grew and the two-party system emerged

The Impact of the French Revolution

• When Washington's first administration ended in 1793, two political groups emerged: Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans and Hamilton Federalists

• Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans supported states' rights and a smaller government while Hamilton Federalists supported a powerful federal government

• The French Revolution started in 1789 and slowly grew to involve several European countries

  • The French Revolution began peacefully but became violent when France declared war on Austria in 1792 and the situation worsened when King Louis XVI was beheaded in 1793, the church was attacked, and the Reign of Terror began

Washington's Neutrality Proclamation

• Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans wanted to support the French in the French Revolution while the Federalists were opposed to doing so

• Washington issued the Neutrality Proclamation of 1793 which stated that the country would remain neutral in the Britain-France war and was supported by Hamilton

Embroilments with Britain

• The British had retained the frontier posts on U.S. soil for years, as an act of defiance against the Peace Treaty of 1783

• London government didn’t want to abandon the fur trade in the Great Lakes region

• British agents openly sold firearms to the Miami Confederacy which was an alliance of 8 Indian nations who terrorized Americans

• Jeffersonians felt that America should fight Britain in defense of America's liberties

• Federalists were in opposition as Hamilton’s aims for economic development were dependent on trade with Britain

Jay's Treaty and Washington's Farewell

• In a last attempt to avoid war, Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay to London in 1794 to negotiate

• Jay's Treaty came into play, with the British promising to evacuate the chain of posts on U.S. soil and pay for damages for the seizures of American ships

• Jay’s Treaty also called for the U.S. to continue paying the debts owed to British merchants on pre-Revolutionary War accounts

• Jay's Treaty caused Spain (feared an Anglo-American alliance)  to strike a deal with the U.S. which was Pinckney's Treaty of 1795 with Spain

• Spain granted Americans free navigation of the Mississippi River and the large disputed territory north of Florida

• Washington left office in 1719 and in his Farewell Address to the nation, he urged against permanent alliances

John Adams Becomes President

• John Adams, Washington’s Vice President, beat Jefferson in becoming the 2nd President of the U.S. in 1797

• Hamilton became the leader of the “High Federalists” (Federalist Party)

Unofficial Fighting with France

• France was upset with Jay's Treaty and began capturing American merchant ships

• John Adams sent John Marshall to France to negotiate in 1797

  • Adams's envoy was secretly approached by 3 go-betweens, later referred to as X, Y, and Z

• French spokesmen demanded a bribe of $250,000 just to talk to Talleyrand (French Minister)

  • Angered by the intolerable terms of the French, Marshall and the envoy returned to the U.S.

  • Angered by the XYZ Affair, America began preparations for war leading to the navy department being created, three-ship navy to be expanded, and the U.S. Marine Corps to be re-established

Adams Puts Patriotism Above Party

• France said that if Americans sent another minister to negotiate, he would be received with respect because France didn’t want another enemy

• Napoleon Bonaparte was the dictator of France with him signing the Convention of 1800 with John Jay

  • Annulled alliance between France and America and called for France to return captured American ships

The Federalist Witch Hunt

• Federalist congress passed a series of oppressive laws aimed at foreigners (or “aliens”) who came to America and supported Jefferson

• The Alien Laws raised the residence requirements for aliens that wanted to become citizens from 5 years, to 14 years

  • The Alien Laws stated that the President could deport or jail foreigners during times of peace/hostilities

• The Sedition Act stated that anyone that impeded with governmental policies or falsely defamed government officials would be held liable to heavy fines and imprisonment

The Virginia (Madison) and Kentucky (Jefferson) Resolutions

• Kentucky and Virginia passed resolutions which stated that the states had the right to refuse laws created by the government

  • No other state followed the two states' resolutions

Federalists versus Democratic-Republicans

• Hamilton Federalists supported a strong central government and believed that the government should support private enterprise

  • Hamilton Federalists also supported the British

• Jeffersonian Anti-Federalists demanded a weak central government with them s supporting states' rights