• This is the only time I will require you to read all the chapter.

• Please read

• Chapters

• 8 and 9• (especially the bold and marginalia

information)

Federalist Era• The government began on compromise;

• To gain support for the Constitution, it had to be bought with promises:

• 1) it had to promise to Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Speech, and had to essentially not meddle in state affairs.

• These proved impractical from the get go.

• The biggest issue facing the United States was establishing credibility and diplomatic legitimacy.

• To do this, Hamilton used his influence and Washington’s influence to establish a strong centralized government; he penned:

• The Report on the Public Credit—wanted the gov’t to assume the public debts—gave ultimate authority to the gov’t over the states. The Report on Creating the National Bank—established a way to fund the war debt and public debt, but it also established a national republican economy.

• Also penned a treatise on the state of Manufactures in the United States.—Recommended gov’t support and subsidies for industry---seemingly at the expense of agriculture.

• Bank issue was unique to the era; Many people feared that so much capital in the hands of a very few would create tyranny and wildcat speculation;

• Also, Parliament, though they had the Bank of England, did not want to establish a bank in the colonies;

• It would compete with the bank of England

• Jefferson also saw this tyranny as real especially with the advent of the Tariff Act of 1789: Though it was essentially designed to raise revenue not exactly protect manufacturers—though Jefferson saw this as the real objective.

• Still, as far; as the Bank, Hamilton wanted a combination of government and private sector investors: Gov’t would provide 1/5th the capital from tax and Tariff revenues; Private investors would sit on the Board—the Bank would control all infrastructure and appropriations initiatives.

• Most obvious question: Whose best interest was this new National Bank.

• Hamilton minced no words—it will help American Industry; agriculture is nothing more than landed aristocrats funded off the slavery of others—a pretentious life at best.

• Diversification not agriculture was the key to American success—according to Hamilton.

• Perpetuating the lifestyle of a few select planters was absurd.

• Hamilton also juggled the new tariff to increase the need and use of American industry;

• It also upped the foreign tariff costing more to import and buy foreign goods;

• British were flooding the American market and Hamilton wanted to shut them out—and increase the confidence of the American consumer;

• Then, he wanted to lower restrictions on immigration—so that America would have cheap abundant labor for manufacturing needs.

Jefferson at once saw the danger to his precious Agrarian society of Genteel manners and true Republican society.

Hamilton’s scheme was dangerous to the virtuous Farmer (Jefferson is speaking of the Southern farmer with his plantations not the northern subsistence farmer)

Jefferson saw Hamilton’s America as immoral,artificial and phony. He saw the exploitation of the wage laborer—as decadent of true American values.

• Jefferson would further assert that banks enriched swindlers at the expense of honest hard working people.

• Nathaniel Macon of North Carolina, suggested banks lived off the labor of others.

• John Randolph asserted that it was agriculture and farming that made America what it had become—he further asserted that agriculture and the small farmer always bears the brunt of taxation.

• Jefferson and his Democrat-Republicans asserted that true virtuous Americans lived on Farms and maintained solid assets as land and managed the prosperity of the nation;

• Manufacturers lived in opulence off the labor and toil of others!!!! (hypocritical, wouldn’t you say)

• But, Hamilton possessed two assets stronger than Jefferson’s bane—He had a large following in congress, who stood to gain money by Hamiltonian economics and he had George Washington.

• Jefferson and Randolph stated that the Constitution gave neither congress nor the executive the power to establish a corporation, which also meant a national chartered bank;

• In essence it would violate the Bill of Rights!

• Hamilton argued that just because the Constitution does not explicitly allow or disallow a certain implied power does not suggest that it does not exist—Constitution indirectly allowed for Congress and the Executive to manage commerce—the Bank was under Commerce.

• To drive the point home, Hamilton suggested that the Constitution does not necessarily specify that Congress should establish a Coast Guard and Build Lighthouses; yet, congress had enacted legislation to do so. Why?

• Because these services and entities are reasonable and aid in defense, security and protection of commerce.

• Washington politely listened to both sides, then Feb 25 1791 he signed the bank bill chartering the B.U.S. to be renewed every twenty years.

• Jefferson resigned in protest. In 1793, Hamilton also resigned from the Cabinet as Sec. Of Treasury. But, he saw his work as done—

• 40 new corporations had been chartered, 9 of them for state banks and the rest as infrastructure projects such as canals, roads, and turnpikes—all financed and supported by BUS capital loans.

• By 1815, American bonds and securities were rated higher than any other financial security or bond on the international market—seems Hamilton was more correct than Jefferson.

• Foreign gold and silver began flowing into B.U.S vaults; that is nice but it is essentially a mirage and artificial claimed Jefferson.

• If the Bank is so good, explain why Hamilton and Washington had to head up a federal Army to put down the whiskey Rebellion in Western Pennsylvania? Good question.

Republicans v. Federalists• The Constitution, while designed to be

comprehensive, by nature could neither predict nor anticipate every little detail of human governments.

• Political parties was one of these unforeseen events.

• In the 1790s politics was dominated by faction, not party. Factions are usually temporary; parties are usually designed around long-term political goals (platforms today).

• Factions tend toward special interests; parties organize around broad constituencies.

• Faction politics tend to be small scale; parties tend to be large scale and perpetuating;

• Faction demographics change with tendencies and emotions; parties tend to solidify into a hard core political philosophy and principle.

• Today we see this in Liberal or Conservative philosophies. Factions are personal; parties survive even with the loss of a leader.

• The idea of political parties offended many of the ‘Founding Fathers.’ Most especially Jefferson and his Democratic-Republicans.

• Parties adulterated virtue; appealed to ill-bred self-interest; Jefferson, Randolph and John Taylor of Caroline (Maryland); assumed that politics must always be a linear, non-partisan mechanism designed for the good of all—not some competing political ideologues embracing partisan expectations.

• This revile of party politics keep Jefferson and his minions fragile and less organized than the Federalists.

• So what are these differences?

• Federalist Republicans• Strong Gov’t Limited Gov’t• Hamiltonian econ Anti-Hamilton• Anti-French Rev. Pro-French Rev• Support of Jay’s Treaty Opposed Jay• Alien-Sedition Act Opposed Alien-• Mostly New England sedition acts• Support—loss of support Strong support

from• In Middle Colonies South and West

• Jay’s Treaty was controversial—Napoleonic wars going on—France opened trade with neutrals—America stepped in and made a killing commercially.

• Britain began to seize American ships under the pretense of Impressment of deserted sailors.

• Jay negotiated a treaty that more benefited England then the U.S. Britain given “most favored nation” status, keeps them commercially dominate—repay Pre-Revolutionary war debts—Britain compensated for seized ships, abandoned British held forts on American soil.

• Then the Federalist (a southerner) also negotiated the Treaty of San Lorenzo (Pinckney’s Treaty)—given Spain a recognized line of the boundary between Fla and the U.S.

• Allowed for free unmolested American transportation through the Port of New Orleans.

• All these actions led to the first real political party elections of 1796—we have been partisan and bickering ever since.

• John Adams barely eked out the first partisan election—he was Federalist;

• Jefferson came in second and by virtue of that became the VEEP;

• Then Adams had to suffer through the XYZ Affair and the crisis of the French Revolution

• By and large Adams to an adequate job as President; He was irascible, but very bright and an extreme Patriot;

• Because of the issue between Britain and France, Adams became embroiled in a “Quasi-War.”

• French ships were seizing American ships because of the “Favored Nation Status” offered to Britain—The French believed that the Jay treaty had sold them out to the British– after all France had spent enormous sums of men and capital assisting the American War for Independence—they expected reciprocation.

• Just as Washington had done when the British were seizing Americans ships, Adams also preferred to negotiate with the French—the decidedly difference in the temperament of the two Presidents was Washington wanted to avoid a war with a much stronger Great Britain—Adams wanted to avoid war, but was prepared to fight France knowing he had the assistance of the British Navy.

• Adams sent an envoy to negotiate with France: Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, John Marshall, and Elbridge Gerry.

• Where the English negotiated from a position of strength and out negotiated Jay, the French were more devious;

• It became known as the XYZ Affair; The French Foreign Minister—Talleyrand tried to bribe the Americans—he wanted 240,000$ just to begin negotiating with the Americans …

• Pinckney stated flatly and out loud “no no, not one sixpence …” This is where we get the media hyped slogan “millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute”

• It seemed as if the federalist would become the dominating party for all time—ending the need for competing party allegiances;

• Unfortunately, Adams was a Patriot, but he assumed that all people were as patriotic as he—he defended liberties, but he was willing to give some up to maintain harmony;

• He enacted the Alien-Sedition Acts—anyone libelous or slanderous to the policies of the administration could be put in Jail and/or fined—especially the Media—as with any censorship it got out of hand and began to imprison fellow Federalist Newspapers.

• The backlash was enormous even within the Federalist camp—Hamilton split with Adams—Jefferson excoriated Adams daily in the press;

• To make matters worse. Adams opened peaceful negotiations with Napoleon.

• Jefferson started a dump Adams movement that reached dizzying heights—and Adams true to his acerbic became more irascible than ever—even to friends. This ensured that Jefferson and the Republicans would win the Presidency in 1800.

• Jefferson won the election of 1800—many feared a radical liberal form of government– all government must rest in the hands of the people. He believed in retrenchment, or a strict constructionist view of the Constitution.

• He wanted to do away with all Federalist notions of centralized government; the federalist were to Pro-British and Hamiltonian economics made America slaves to British Finance and Commerce;

• Jefferson’s inauguration was the first held in Washington; he also on the first day of office began a dismantling of the federalist structure.

• He also shrank the size of the national Army that Adams had expanded; he down graded the Navy and stated flatly there would be no “Favored Nations Status.” This ensured a quarrel with Great Britain.

• However, Jefferson turned out to be less radical and dangerous as anyone feared. He abandoned his Republican principles quickly.

• He made no effort to make universal suffrage mandatory—maintained the property rights criteria.

• Jefferson suggested that everybody should own land, therefore they could vote;

• In fact in Virginia and other states because of the property clause—many people lost their ability to vote;

• Though he espoused the Agrarian principles of virtue and gentility, he was unsuccessful in promoting the agrarian agenda—in fact, Jefferson was a large plantation aristocrat—he actually knew very little about agriculture—he did not object to small scale industry.

• Though he despised Hamilton, he could not undo much of Hamilton’s policies; mostly because they were sound financial and commercial policies;

• He did cancel military spending but then was embarrassed by the Barbary pirates forcing American Commercial shipping to pay ransom—what little Navy he had not destroyed did a good job of defending itself, but it was clear to be a commercial power one needed to be a Naval power.

• To object British and French aggression against American shipping he enacted the Embargo Act of 1808;

• This was in response to the British ship Leopard’s attack on the American Commerce vessel Chesapeake—the idea was to hurt both belligerent nations by restricting commerce—it however, hurt the American economy tremendously

• Jefferson’s biggest battle would be with Federalist John Marshall; Adams appointed Marshall as Chief Justice to the Supreme Court.

• Until Marshall, the Court sort of lagged behind the other political entities—and other than a Constitutional stipulation of its need to be formed sort of remained ambiguous in structure, size, and authority.

• John Marshall would change all that--

• The federal Judiciary Act of 1789 allowed for one Supreme Court—also there could be an establishment of lower federal courts;

• This is one victory for the anti-federalist, but at a cost; they wanted to ensure that some national judicial power could not over step the power or functions of the states.

• The Judiciary act created 13 federal districts; appeals could be heard from these courts by 3 established Appellate Courts; if the decision was still unclear, the Supreme Court would have the final say—the issue then as now is when is it legitimate for the Supreme Court to over turn a lower court decision after a lower court has already decided—Stare Decisis—let it stand.

• The anti-federalist wanted only the supreme court to hear cases dealing only with constitutional issues and international treaties.

• John Marshall would have the answer in Marbury vs. Madison

• Upon assuming the executive office, Jefferson (imbibed with his distrust and fear of the Judiciary—not to mention his intense dislike for Chief Justice John Marshall) enacted a repeal of the Judiciary Act of 1801 which made the courts more authoritative;

• John Marshall was more cautious and wise, he knew that the President and the Congress contended that they all possessed coequal rights assuming constitutionality questions.

• Marbury vs. Madison changed everything and frustrated Jefferson even more.

• Thing to remember, Chief Justice Marshall founded in favor of Jefferson and Madison and refused Marbury his Judgeship;

• He, however, leveled a boom to the legislative and executive branches of government—It would be the responsibility of the Supreme Court and Supreme Court alone on deciding Judicial Review—decides the constitutionality or unconstitutionality of any and all laws.

• Marshall would go even further in establishing the supremacy of the Court concerning Judicial Review;

• Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee established the authority of the Supreme Court over the authority of state courts;

• Also McCulloch v. Maryland established the existence of “implied” powers in the federal government whether explicitly or not explicitly stated in the Constitution.

• Though Jefferson disagreed with Marshall, he accepted the “implied Powers” interpretation when purchasing the Louisiana Purchase.

• He did this to distract American attentions and fears of European entanglements.

• The Famous Lewis and Clarke Expedition opened Americans eyes to the vastness of their newly acquired continent—he also sent Zebulon Pike toward the Southwest to explore—Pike’s Peak.

• This began a huge westward expansion and the rise of the “Mountain Men.”

• It, however, opened the door to intrigue and deception; Aaron Burr plotted to set up an independent territory in this new western territories—Gen. Wilkinson double-crossed Burr and exposed his scheme to the authorities.

• Jefferson’s presidency was not exactly a ringing endorsement or success for the virtuous Republicanism of agrarian aristocracy.

• Still, with the new era and the rise of Geo-Political intrigue and exposure, America was unable to remain neutral or disinterested in political soirees. What this means is that as America feared of losing its independence and the meddlesome British—

• They once again looked around and discovered that the root of all their problems was the British—the scoundrels were still undermining everything American

• When assessing all the issues, whether it was the domestic Indian issues, or international Commerce, or even domestic commerce—as before 1760, the instigators remained British.

• The short term solution was to do as William Henry Harrison and strike the Indians before they could strike the western settlements, (Pan-Indian Resistance Movement); political and cultural unification of all Indian tribes against all white incursions into Indian territory and culture;

• Or they could take the long term more dangerous course of confronting the British head-on and ridding themselves of these perpetual pests.