New Nation

New Nation 1783-1803

Developing the Constitution

1. The Articles of Confederation were the first constitution of the United States. It was weak because it lacked provisions for executive and judicial powers. It reflected the Americans’ fear of a powerful national government. As a result, it created a government that had no power to tax, regulate commerce, or establish one national currency. The Articles gave individual states more power than the national government had. As a result, conflicts between the states threatened the existence of the nation. 2. Shays’ rebellion, an attempt by a group of indebted farmers to secure weapons from a Federal Armory, became the catalyst for the United States to recognize the need for a new constitution. Without the ability to tax, the central government could not repair the national economy. 3. The Federalists focused their arguments on the inadequacies of national government under the Articles of Confederation and on the benefits of national government as formed by the Constitution. They were also much more favorably disposed toward commerce than were the Anti-Federalists, and they argued that a strong central government would foster the commercial growth of the new country. 4. The Anti-Federalists feared the power of a strong central government. They worried that the rights of the common people, like farmers, would be suppressed by those who held power. 5. Alexander Hamilton and James Madison were the authors of the Federalist Papers. The Federalist Papers communicate the central ideas of the Federalists: the benefits of a union between the states; the problems with the confederation as it stood at the time; the importance of an energetic, effective federal government; and a defense of the republicanism of the proposed Constitution. The Federalist Papers make a persuasive case for the federal government’s role in preserving order and securing the liberty of a large republic. The federalists believed that a weak union of the states would make the country more vulnerable to internal and external dissension, including civil war and invasion from foreign powers. 6. The Great Compromise helped “save” the Constitution by settling the dispute between states with large populations and states with small populations. The compromise combined components of the Virginia and New Jersey plans by establishing a national legislature to which representatives were elected based on a state’s population, rather than one in which all states were equally represented. The compromise called for the creation of a legislature with two chambers, a House of Representatives with representation based on population and a Senate with equal representation for all states. 7. Slavery was another divisive and controversial issue that confronted delegates to the Constitutional Convention. Though slavery existed in all the states, southern states depended on slave labor because their economies were based on producing cash crops. When it became clear that states with large populations might have more representatives n the new national government, states with large slave populations demanded to be allowed to count their slaves as a part of their population. Northern states resisted. Both sides compromised by allowing the states to count three- fifths of their slaves when calculating their entire population. Also, to protect the practice of slavery, states with large numbers of slaves demanded that the new government allow for the continuation of the slave trade for 20 years and that Northern states return runaway slaves to their owners. Delegates to the Constitutional Convention agreed to these demands. 8. Separation of Powers was a key principle for the delegates at the Constitutional Convention Despite the fact that most delegates to the Constitutional Convention believed the government of the Articles of Confederation had to be replaced; many still feared strong central governments. To reassure people that the new government would not be too powerful, the framers of the Constitution created a limited government with divided powers. The rights guaranteed to U.S. citizens by the Constitution limited the power of the government. Powers were divided in two ways within the new government. First, power was divided between national and state governments. The power of the national government was divided among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches. 9. The power of the executive branch was weakened because it was shared with the legislative and judicial branches. For example, the legislature can override a presidential veto of a bill, and the Supreme Court can rule that a bill signed by the president is unconstitutional. To further safeguard against an abuse of power, the Constitution gave each branch of government a way to “check and balance” the power of the other branches. 10. Checks and balances were a guiding principle as the Constitution was written. Provisions were included to ensure none of the three branches would become too powerful. For example, the president has the power to veto laws passed by Congress. 11. The Bill of Rights, which were added to the Constitution after it was ratified. The Federalist papers, the promise of the Bill of Rights, and the efforts of Federalists convinced a majority of voters to support the Constitution. It was eventually ratified and became the basis for all law, rights, and governmental power in the United States.

1.     George Washington was elected the first president of the United States. He established important patterns for future presidents to follow. Developments that altered the course of the history of the U.S. government took place during his administration. Washington favored non-intervention in Europe and avoided siding with France against Great Britain. Instead, the United States persuaded Britain to forgive many pre-Revolutionary debts and to drop certain restrictions on American trade with British colonies in the Americas. This ushered in an era of booming trade with Britain. He also warned of the dangers of political parties as people followed the views of either Alexander Hamilton or Thomas Jefferson. 2. Tax policies became a major issue under Washington’s administration. His government persuaded Congress to pass taxes on liquor to help pay the states’ debt from the Revolutionary War. The tax hit the small whiskey- makers in western settlements particularly hard because they were used to making liquor from excess crops of grain to make it easier to transport and even used it as a medium of exchange. 3. The Whiskey Rebellion resulted when, up and down areas west of the Appalachians, armed violence broke out as farmers frightened and attacked federal tax collectors. President George Washington sent a large militia force into the western counties and put down the rebellion. Washington’s response showed his constitutional authority to enforce the law and that if Americans did not like a law the way to change it was to petition Congress peacefully. 4. Political parties were first established in the United States as Thomas Jefferson, Washington’s Secretary of State, and Alexander Hamilton, Washington’s Secretary of the Treasury, articulated their differing views of the role of the Federal government. The box below gives an overview of their beliefs and types of people who would have supported them. 5. The presidency of John Adams set examples that influenced future presidents as well as the course of American history, but his administration was plagued by conflicts with France and Great Britain that crippled the nation’s economy. He also received harsh political criticism from supporters of Vice President Jefferson. To aid Adams, Congress passed laws that increased citizenship requirements so Jefferson’s support would be cut off from the immigrant community. Congress also tried to stop the criticism with attempts to limit the speech and press rights of Jefferson’s followers.

Vocabulary

1. Treaty of Paris, 1783
2. Articles of Confederation 1781-1789
3. Daniel Shay's Rebellion
4. Anti-Federalists
5. Federalists
6. Constitution
7. factions
8. checks and balances
9. Alexander Hamilton (Federal bank, federalist)
10. James Madison
11. Great Compromise
12. separation of powers: Executive, Legislative, Judicial
13. limited government
14. Bill of Rights
15. John Adams
16. Whiskey Rebellion
17. neutrality
18. political parties
19. Northwest Ordinance of 1787
20.  Thomas Jefferson 

BONUS: APUSH Test- Period III
1. Agrarian
2. Alexander Hamilton
3. Alien and Sedition Acts
4. Anarchy
5. Anti-Federalists
6. Articles of Confederation
7. Assumption
8. Battle of Fallen Timbers
9. Bill of Rights
10. Checks & Balances
11. Compact Theory
12. Confederation
13. Consent of the governed
14. Convention of 1800
15. Daniel Shays
16. Electoral College
17. Excise Tax
18. Federalists
19. Federation
20. Funding at Par
21. Great Compromise
22. Henry Knox
23. Implied Powers
24. James Madison
25. Jay Treaty
26. Jeffersonian Republicans
27. John Jay
28. Judiciary Act of 1789
29. Kentucky/ Virginia Resolutions
30. Land Ordinance of 1785
31. “Mad” Anthony Wayne
32. Mobocracy
33. Neutrality Proclamation 1793
34. Ninth Amendment
35. Northwest Ordinance
36. Pinckney Treaty
37. Republicanism
38. Shay's Rebellion
39. Society of the Cincinnati
40. Sovereignty
41. States' Rights
42. Strict Interpretation
43. Talleyrand
44. Tenth Amendment
45. The "large-state plan"
46. The Cabinet
47. The Federalist Papers
48. Three-Fifths Compromise
49. Treaty of Greenville
50. U. S. Constitution
51. Whiskey Rebellion

The Critical Period 1783-1789

Problem #1: Soldiers In A Time Of Peace

·         Concern over a standing army

o   Fear of army being used for imposing a tyrannical government

·         Inability to raise funds to support an army

o   Congress could not raise enough revenue

o   Some states withheld money they promised Congress

·         Effectiveness

o   Not effective 

o   Potential mutiny for unpaid veterans

o   Inability to provide for the common defense of the nation

Problem #2: Settling the National Debt

·         Revolutionary War

o   Gov’t owed France > 10 million dollars

o   Gov’t owed U.S. citizens > 34 million dollars

o   Struggled to raise revenue

·         Congress could not tax (states had that power)

o   Congress had to rely on borrowing

o   Could not pass amendment to change the law because they needed 13 out of 13 vote to amend laws – not every state voted yes

·         Not successful

o   Failed to develop a workable plan

o   Bad credit rating

Problem #3: Debtors, Creditors, & Paper Money

·         Money supply dried up

o   Huge war debt for the states

o   States raised taxes

o   Falling prices for crops hurt farmers > creditors seized farms

o   Farmers reacted with violence

·         Congress could not control the paper money supply

o   States printed their own money

o   Inflation led to paper money being nearly worthless

·         Effectiveness

o   Not effective

o   Unstable currency and therefore a weak economy

o   Conflict and violence between creditors and debtors

Problem #4: The Pirates of North Africa

·         Pirates harassing U.S. merchants

o   U.S. no longer had the protection of the British navy

·         No mechanism to fight the pirates

o   British cut the yearly 4 million in trade

o   U.S. forced to pay tribute/bribe

o   U.S. did not have the power to fight the pirates (strong navy), nor the money to continue to pay them off

·         Effectiveness

o   Not effective

o   Just caused more economic problems

o   Tribute of 1 million dollars to let the captured Americans go

Problem #5: The Treaty of Paris

·         Enforcement of treaty provisions

o   Some states opposed the treaty

o   Conflict over treatment of loyalists (get their land back?)

o   Colonial debt to British merchants (paper money O.K.?)

o   British presence in the Northwest (Ohio region)

·         Weak Congress

o   Could not force states to obey the treaty

o   Could not force the British out of the Northwest (Ohio region)

·         Effectiveness

o   Not effective

o   More credit issues

o   Inability to provide for the common defense of the nation

Problem #6: Shays’s Rebellion

·         WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?

o   Excessive property taxes (state taxes)

o   No pay for rev. war vets ( no power to tax)

o   Lack of stable currency

o   Lack of uniform currency

o   Foreclosures

Solution #1 – Western Lands

·         Western Lands

o   The greatest accomplishment of the Articles

o   Established a policy for settlement & creating a government in new lands

o   Cessation of Western Land Claims

§  All states gave up their claims to territories gained by the U.S. in the Treaty of Paris (1783)

·         Land Ordinance of 1785

o   Established a policy for division & settlement of land north of the Ohio River

o   Townships of 6 miles square divided into 36 subdivisions of 640 acres each

o   Sale of sections used to pay off national debt (at least $1 an acre)

·         Northwest Ordinance of 1787

·         2-Stage plan for territories becoming states:

o   When an area had a population of more than 5,000 adult males > it could establish a government [governor, legislature, judges]

o   At 60,000 people > write a constitution & apply for statehood

LIST BY STATE      

      Connecticut

•         Oliver Ellsworth

•         William Samuel Johnson

•         Roger Sherman

Delaware

•         Richard Bassett

•         Gunning Bedford Jr.

•         Jacob Broom

•         John Dickinson

•         George Read

Georgia

•         Abraham Baldwin

•         William Few

•         William Houstoun

•         William Leigh Pierce

Maryland

•         Daniel Carroll

•         Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer

•         Luther Martin

•         James McHenry

•         John Francis Mercer

Massachusetts

•         Elbridge Gerry

•         Nathaniel Gorham

•         Rufus King

•         Caleb Strong

New Hampshire

•         Nicholas Gilman

•         John Langdon

•         New Jersey

•         David Brearley

•         Jonathan Dayton

•         William Churchill Houston

•         William Livingston

•         William Paterson

New York

•         Alexander Hamilton

•         John Lansing Jr.

•         Robert Yates

North Carolina

•         William Blount

•         William Richardson Davie

•         Alexander Martin

•         Richard Dobbs Spaight Sr.

•         Hugh Williamson

South Carolina

•         Pierce Butler

•         Charles Pinckney

•         Charles Cotesworth Pinckney

•         John Rutledge

Pennsylvania

•         George Clymer

•         Thomas Fitzsimons

•         Benjamin Franklin

•         Jared Ingersoll

•         Thomas Mifflin

•         Gouverneur Morris

•         Robert Morris

•         James Wilson

Virginia

•         John Blair

•         James Madison

•         George Mason

•         James McClurg

•         Edmund Randolph

•         George Washington

•         George Wythe

ALPHABETICAL BIOS

1. Abraham Baldwin. A lawyer who had gone to Yale and lived in Georgia at the time of writing. He was wealthy and owned about $2,500 in bonds he’d bought for about $300.

2. Richard Bassett. A lawyer and had inherited a plantation of 6,000 acres. He was one of the wealthiest men in Delaware and owned three homes.

3. Gunning Bedford. Lawyer, state attorney general of Delaware. Owned $2,874 in bonds for which he had paid $360.

4. John Blair. A wealthy Virginian, a lawyer and judge. Owned over $10,000 worth of bonds and at least 26 slaves.

5. William Blount. Very wealthy. By the 1790s he owned almost a million acres in holdings in North Carolina and Tennessee. On his plantation in North Carolina he owned 30 slaves.

6. David Brearley. A lawyer and chief justice of New Jersey. Not a wealthy man.

7. Jacob Broom. Delaware. Not an especially wealthy man, but he did own two farms and enough money and homes to be a lender.

8. Pierce Butler. A South Carolina lawyer and plantation owner who owned 143 slaves on two plantations in 1790. At the time of the Convention he owed money.

9. Daniel Carroll. Maryland. Owned a large amount of land, much of which became Washington, D.C. Owned 53 slaves and made most of his money from tobacco.

10. George Clymer. A well-to-do Philadelphia merchant. Owned a “thriving import/export business” and ventured occasionally into shipbuilding. Became a substantial banker.

11. William R. Davie. A North Carolina lawyer and plantation owner. In 1790 he owned 36 slaves.

12. Jonathan Dayton. New Jersey lawyer, son of a wealthy merchant. He speculated extensively in bonds, especially at the time of the Convention. With a syndicate of other wealthy men from New Jersey he bought almost a million acres in Ohio.

13. John Dickinson. Delaware. A very wealthy lawyer and “gentleman” farmer.

14. Oliver Ellsworth. Connecticut. Acquired a large estate. Landlord, lawyer. Speculated in bonds and made about a 100 percent profit.

15. William Few. Georgia. A lawyer who became “moderately wealthy,” though originally he was a small farmer. He came to own about 2,300 acres (slaveholdings unknown) and a small amount of bonds.

16. Thomas Fitzsimmons. Wealthy Philadelphia banker and merchant. He apparently had speculated in large amounts of bonds.

17. Benjamin Franklin. Pennsylvania. Printer, inventor, diplomat. An old man at the time of the Convention, Franklin had become a wealthy man and was worth about

$150,000—a lot of money back then.

18. Elbridge Gerry. (One of the three who refused to sign the Constitution.) A wealthy Massachusetts merchant. Held more bonds (well over $50,000) than anyone else at the Convention.

19. Nicholas Gilman. New Hampshire. Businessman. Speculated in a substantial amount of bonds.

20. Nathaniel Gorham. Massachusetts. A privateer and speculator during the Revolutionary War and had made “a tidy fortune.”

21. Alexander Hamilton. A New York lawyer and financier. “Perpetually in debt.” A key supporter and organizer for the Constitution.

22. William C. Houston. (Left the Convention after one week because of illness.) Had been a professor and lawyer; held well-paying government jobs. Held no bonds.

23. William Houstoun. A wealthy Georgia plantation owner. He owned slaves, though how many is not known, and a great deal of land.

24. Jared Ingersoll. A Philadelphia lawyer, graduated from Yale. Owned no bonds, but “was a man of considerable wealth.”

25. Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer. Owned 20 slaves and was “well known for the parties he gave at his beautiful plantation” in Maryland. It’s unknown how many slaves he owned on another of his plantations. He “was possessed of unusual wealth.”

26. William Samuel Johnson. The son of a wealthy Connecticut clergyman who inherited a great deal of money. He studied law at Yale. Shortly before the Convention he lost most of his wealth.

27. Rufus King. A Massachusetts lawyer, educated at Harvard, he invested in thousands of dollars of bonds. He was also a bank director.

28. John Langdon. Grew rich during the Revolutionary War as a shipbuilder, privateer, and supplier of food to the troops. He owned “a fortune.” Also became a banker and owned a large amount of bonds.

29. John Lansing, Jr. Walked out of the Convention after six weeks and strongly opposed the Constitution. He was a very rich man, had a successful law practice in Albany, New York, and owned tens of thousands of acres of land.

30. William Livingston. First governor of New Jersey. Owned no bonds, but had a “solid legal practice” and was “fairly wealthy” by the time he died.

31. James Madison. Called “the father of the Constitution,” Madison, of Virginia, was not terribly wealthy. He owned a 560-acre plantation and nine slaves. However, Madison did come from a very wealthy slave-owning plantation family.

32. Alexander Martin. North Carolina lawyer and plantation owner. Owned 47 slaves.

33. Luther Martin. Opposed the Constitution. As a child lived in near poverty. Became a wealthy lawyer and later Maryland attorney general. Owned six “house slaves.”

 34. George Mason. Also opposed the Constitution. Mason was a wealthy Virginian. He owned tens of thousands of acres, about 300 slaves, and many thousands of dollars in other property.

35. James McClurg. Son of a wealthy Virginia doctor. Owned some land and slaves, but thousands of dollars of bonds.

36. James McHenry. An extremely wealthy Maryland doctor.

37. John Francis Mercer. Opposed the Constitution. He was a Maryland lawyer  and owned six slaves. He also owned bonds.

38. Thomas Mifflin. Wealthy Pennsylvania merchant, also owned bank shares.

39. Governeur Morris. Came from a wealthy New York family, he became a successful lawyer and merchant. He had become “quite a wealthy man.”

40. Robert Morris. Known as the “Great Man,” he was “the real financial giant of the period.” One of the richest and most powerful men in the United States. Banker, merchant, land owner, bond owner, at the time of the Convention he controlled about $2 million worth of property. However, because of losses in land speculation he died in poverty.

41. William Paterson. Not a wealthy man, but his New Jersey law practice “brought him a good income.”

42. William Pierce. A bankrupt Georgia merchant, involved in the rice trade. Had to leave the Convention early because his finances were such a mess.

43. Charles Cotesworth Pinckney. A South Carolina lawyer and plantation owner. In 1790 he owned 70 slaves, down from the 200 slaves he’d owned before his property was taken away by the British in 1780.

44. Charles Pinckney. Cousin of Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, was also a lawyer and plantation owner. In 1790 he had a good income and 111 slaves.

45. Edmund Randolph. A member of “one of the leading families of Virginia.” Owned at least 16 slaves and several hundred acres of land. Also owned several thousand dollars in bonds.

46. George Read. A Delaware lawyer with “a moderate income,” he owned some bank shares and some public bonds. However, he did live in a mansion and own slaves.

47. John Rutledge. At the time of the Revolution, the richest lawyer in South Carolina. He owned 14 pieces of land, including five plantations. As of 1790, he owned 243 slaves.

48. Roger Sherman. Almost went to debtors prison as a result of his losses during the Revolution. In his earlier years, he had been a lawyer, store owner, and farmer. According to his biographer he “always lived in a comfortable manner, and his property was gradually increasing.”

49. Richard Dobbs Spaight. North Carolina plantation owner and politician. Owned 71 slaves.

50. Caleb Strong. A prosperous country lawyer from Massachusetts. Most of his personal property was invested in public debt.

51. George Washington. Probably the richest man in the United States. In Virginia alone he owned over 35,000 acres and thousands more all over the country: New York, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Maryland, etc. He was a large slave owner, but the exact figure is not known. He also was involved in banking and was a large moneylender.

52. Hugh Williamson. A North Carolina doctor and businessman. Speculated in western lands and owned some public debt, but most of his money came from his medical practice.

53. James Wilson. A wealthy Pennsylvania lawyer. Owned bank stocks and was a director of the Bank of North America.

54. George Wythe. Freed “most of his slaves” when the Revolutionary War began. He was a lawyer and a judge in Virginia. In 1788, he owned some public debt and three slaves. 

55. Robert Yates. A lawyer and a judge of the New York Supreme Court, he “lived modestly” and “died poor.” He left the Constitutional Convention early and opposed the Constitution.

Drafting the Constitution

Annapolis Convention (1786)

a.       Principle purpose:  Improve interstate commerce

b.      Only 5 states showed up.

c.       Alexander Hamilton gained a commitment for a constitutional convention the next year in Philadelphia.

d.      The purpose would be to overhaul the Articles of Confederation.

                

Constitutional Convention

Delegates to the Constitutional Convention (ABOVE)

Three major concepts became part of the Constitution:

1.      National principle: the national gov’t should be stronger than the states.

a.       The federal gov't drew its power from the people, not the states.

b.      Supremacy Clause

2.      Separation of powers:

a.       Each branch should be independent of each other with specified powers.

3.      Representation in Congress was the biggest issue of the Convention.

a.       Two major plans debated regarding representation in Congress:

1.       "Large-State Plan" (Virginia Plan) -- written by Madison

•          Representation in both houses of a bicameral Congress should be based on population—"proportional representation."

•          Larger states would thus have a political advantage.

2.        "Small-State Plan" (New Jersey Plan)

·         "Equal representation" in a unicameral Congress by states, regardless of size and population.

·         Weaker states feared that under Virginia's plan stronger states would join together and dominate the rest.

b.       The impasse threatened to break up the convention.

c.       The "Great Compromise" (Connecticut Compromise) – Roger Sherman

•         Smaller states conceded representation by population in the House of Representatives.

•         Larger states conceded equal representation in the Senate

o   Each state would have two senators.

•         Every tax bill would originate in the House since big states would have to pay a larger portion of taxes.

•         Large states benefited more from the compromise.

Ratification

1.      Federalists & Anti-Federalists

Federalists

•         Supported ratification of the Constitution

–        Were well-organized & educated

–        Used Federalist Papers to argue for ratification

Anti-Federalists

•         Against ratification

–        Distrusted a  gov’t that removed power from the hands  of the people

–     Wanted more protection of individual liberties

FEDERALIST ERA (1789-1800) 

Led by George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, the first administration under the Constitution overcame various difficulties and firmly established the political and economic foundations of the new federal government.

President George Washington’s Administration
Washington was unanimously elected by the Electoral College in 1789.
Oath of office: April 30, 1789 in the temporary capital of New York City
                 • John Adams was sworn in as vice president.

Washington's cabinet
1. Precedent: consulting of cabinet members (department heads) in order to make decisions
2. The Constitution does not mention a cabinet.
3. The cabinet has become an integral part of the presidency.
The first cabinet:
a. Secretary of State – Thomas Jefferson
b. Secretary of the Treasury – Alexander Hamilton
c. Secretary of War – Henry Knox
d. Attorney General- Edmund Randolph ; became the 4th major cabinet member after passage of Judiciary Act of 1789

Hamilton’s Economic Plan
1. Pay off national debt at face value plus interest and assume war debts of the state
2. Place high tariffs on imported goods
3. Create a national bank to stabilize currency

Jefferson (and Madison) strongly opposed the bank.
• States' righters feared liberties would be jeopardized by a huge central bank.
• Strict construction: strict interpretation of the Constitution
· Jefferson: the Constitution did not stipulate a creation of a national bank.
• Loose construction: broad interpretation of the Constitution
Hamilton argued the Constitution would support a plan for a national bank. 

• “Elastic clause”: provided for passing any laws "necessary and proper” to carry out the powers vested in the various governmental agencies.”

• Bank would be "necessary" to store revenues from taxes and the regulation of trade, both of which were stated in the Constitution.

Washington reluctantly signed the bank into law in 1791; 20 year charter

• The old North-South friction surfaced again.

o The Bank favored commercial and financial centers in the North.

o The agricultural South saw their state banks decline.

Bank issue sparked the open public split between Hamilton and Jefferson

Choosing Sides

• Alexander Hamilton

• Issues: Loose interpretation of Constitution

• Strong power held by national government

• Government led by elite with good educations

• Fear of mob rule

• Industrial economy

• Paying off national & state debts

• National bank was constitutional

• Trade with Great Britain

• Support: John Adams

• New England & middle states

• Bankers, Clergy

• Landowners, Lawyers

• Manufacturers, Merchants

• Thomas Jefferson

• Issues: Strict interpretation of Constitution

• Limited power shared by states & localities

• Government led by farmers and trades people with good virtues

• Fear of overly-powerful government

• Agricultural economy

• Paying off national debt only

• National bank unconstitutional

• Trade with France

• Support: James Madison

• Southern states & rural areas

• Farmers

• Trades people

• Urban immigrants

“The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is, in extending our commercial relations to have with them as little political connection as possible. So far as we have already formed engagements let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop.…The Unity of Government which constitutes you one people…is a main Pillar in the Edifice of your real independence…your tranquility at home; your peace abroad.…I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the State, with particular reference to founding them on geographical discriminations.…The Spirit of Party…is inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes, in all governments, more or less stifled, controlled or repressed; but in those of the popular form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst enemy. The alternate dominion of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge…is itself a frightful despotism; but this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism.”

-George Washington, Farewell Address, 1796

John Adams Becomes President

1796 campaign

• Adams was supported by New England and Federalists

– Defeated Jefferson 71-68 in Electoral College

– Jefferson becomes VP

• France and US close to war.

– Jay’s Treaty

– US not honoring the Franco-American Treaty of 1778

FEDERALISTS

1) Alexander Hamilton/John Adams

2) Led by merchants, bankers and lawyers living primarily in New England.

3) Favored a strong central government.

4) Interpreted the Constitution loosely--- ”implied powers”

5) Believed in a government by the elite, educated and wealthy.

6) Pro-England.

7) Favored Hamilton's financial policies----support BUS

8) Vision for US: Trade center, industry and self-sufficient.

DEMOCRATIC-REPUBLICANS

1) Thomas Jefferson/James Madison.

2) Led by planters, farmers and wage earners living primarily in the South and West.

3) Favored strong state governments over national government.

4) Interpreted the Constitution strictly--- “enumerated powers”

5) Rule by the educated masses.

6) Pro-France.

7) Opposed Hamilton's financial policies---against BUS

8) Vision for US: Agricultural society, little trade and industry

• Fighting with France

• French upset by US violation of France-US Treaty of 1778

• Upset with Jay’s Treaty toward alliance with England

• French warships impressed over 300 US merchant ships by 1797

• XYZ Affair

– French demanded an apology

– Demanded a $12 million loan.

• Americans wanted war and were heard to say “millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute”

• US prepares for war, expands navy, creates the US Marine Corps.

• 1798-1800: In undeclared hostilities, mostly around West Indies

– US captured over 80 French ships but lost several hundred to France.

– Needed only slight push for war.

• Alien & Sedition Acts 1798

– Alien Laws: raised residency required for citizenship to 14 years (from resulting in fewer Democratic-Republican voters

• Alien Laws also gave President authority to deport (peace) or imprison (wartime) foreigners

– Sedition Act: prohibited impeding policies of government or falsely defaming officials ~ aimed at Jeffersonian newspapers

• Sedition Act violated Constitution, but Federalist SC would not overturn

– Law wrote to expire in 1801 in case Federalists lost election

•         Despite violation of freedoms, Acts were very popular

“That if any person shall write, print, utter, or publish, or shall cause or procure to be written, printed, uttered or published, or shall knowingly and willingly assist in any false, Scandalous and malicious writing or writings against the government of the United States, or either house of Congress or the President of the United States, Then such person, being thereof convicted before any court of the United States, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars and by imprisonment not exceeding two years……”

•         VA & KY Resolutions

–        Jefferson (secretly) & Madison write resolutions adopted by KY & VA legislatures arguing “nullification”

–        US government had overstepped its bounds ~ “compact” with states had been violated

–        As a result, states could “nullify” federal laws ~ specifically the Alien & Sedition Acts

•         Federalist response: it’s people, not states, that formed union

– That the General Assembly protests against the alarming infractions of the Constitution, in the "Alien and Sedition Acts" passed at the last session of Congress.

– That this state having by its Convention, expressly declared, that among other essential rights, "the Liberty of Conscience and of the Press cannot be cancelled, abridged, restrained, or modified by any authority of the United States,"

– The General Assembly appeals to the other states, in confidence that they will concur that the acts are unconstitutional and that the necessary and proper measures will be taken by each in maintaining the Authorities, Rights, and Liberties, referred to the States respectively, or to the people.

•         Patriotism Above Party

–        New French leader, Napoleon and Talleyrand did not want war, or to push the US to Britain

•         French send back-channel message that new US minister would be received properly

•         1799: Adams submits to Senate new minister to France

–        Convention of 1800 signed:

•         ended Franco-American alliance

–        Adams deserves credit:

•         Avoided war

•         Unknowingly laid foundation for LA Purchase

–        Adams will not be re-elected in 1800

•         Hamilton and the war-hawk Federalists enraged, but most Americans agreeable to try for peace

•         1800: new US envoys come to find Napoleon as new dictator

•         Wants to resolve US conflict

  

Supreme Court under John Marshall

• Marbury vs. Madison, 1803

• Case: William Marbury, a Federalist and a “midnight appointment” of President Adams, did not receive his commission from Sec. of State, James Madison. Marbury asked the SC to issue a “writ of mandamus” forcing Madison to deliver his commission.

• Decision/Reason: Marshall dismissed suit, but in doing so struck down part of Judiciary Act of 1789 because SC had no authority to give Marbury his commission.

• Significance: Established precedent of “judicial review” and the Supreme Court, not states had power to declare laws of Congress unconstitutional.

• Fletcher v. Peck (1810)

• Case: involved Georgia legislature, bribed, granted 35 million acres in the Yazoo River, Mississippi to private speculators. Next legislature cancelled transaction. Appealed to the Supreme Court.

• Decision/Reason: SC concluded a state could not pass legislation invalidating a contract thus protecting property rights against popular pressures. State law cannot impair contracts violates Constitution

• Significance: Overturned a state decision because the legislative grant was a contract and national govt. is over the states.

• Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 1819

• Case: Involved a law of NH that changed Dartmouth College from a privately chartered college into a public institution

• Decision/Reason: SC struck down the state law as unconstitutional, arguing that a contract for a private corporation could not be altered by the state. Upheld the sanctity of contracts and private property.

• Significance: Decision was important in assuring economic development and encouraging investment in corporations. In addition, it set a precedent for the Supreme Court’s overturning acts of state legislatures and state courts.

• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

• Case: The state of MD tried to collect a tax from the Second Bank of the United States

• Decision/Reason: Using a loose interpretation of the Constitution, Marshall ruled that the federal government had the implied power to create the bank (which was in question)

• Significance: A state could not tax a federal institution because “the power to tax is the power to destroy” and that federal laws are supreme over state laws

• Cohens v. Virginia (1821)

• Case: In VA, the Cohens were convicted of selling Washington, D.C. lottery tickets authorized by Congress

• Decision/Reason: Marshall and the Court upheld the conviction. Case established the principle that the SC could review a state court’s decision involving any of the powers of the federal government

• Significance: Solidified the belief that the Supreme Court has the last and final say in law.

• Gibbons v. Ogden (1821)

• Case: NY state granted a monopoly to a steamboat company that conflicted with a charter authorized by Congress

• Decision/Reason: Marshall ruled NY monopoly was unconstitutional, establishing the federal govt’s broad control of interstate commerce. Congress regulates commerce.

• Significance: The decision secures the concept of a common market and prevents states from impeding (disrupting) commerce.

Chapter 09

The Confederation and the Constitution

1776-1790

1. The Pursuit of Equality
· The Continental Army officers formed an exclusive hereditary order called the Society of the Cincinnati.
· Virginia Statue for Religious Freedom- created in 1786 by Thomas Jefferson and his co-reformers; stated that religion should not be imposed on anybody and that each person decided his/her own faith.
· The Philadelphia Quakers in 1775 founded the first anti-slavery society.
· The 1st Continental Congress called for the complete abolition of the slave trade in 1774. Several northern states went further and either abolished slavery altogether or provided the gradual emancipation of slaves. No states south of Pennsylvania abolished slavery.

2. Constitution Making in the States
· The 2nd Continental Congress called upon the colonies in 1776 to draft new constitutions. Massachusetts called a special convention to draft its constitution and then submitted the final draft to the people.
· As written documents, the state constitutions were intended to represent a fundamental law, superior to the short-lived impulses of ordinary legislation.
· In the Revolutionary era, the capitals of New Hampshire, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia were all moved westward.

3. Economic Crosscurrents
· Economic democracy preceded political democracy.
· Due to the independence from Britain, the United States had to make everything on its own which it no longer imported from Britain.
· Many Americans were poor because the economy was so bad.

4. Creating a Confederation
· Shortly before declaring independence in 1776, the 2nd Continental Congress appointed a committee to draft a written constitution for the new nation. The finished product was the Articles of Confederation. It was adopted by Congress in 1777 and it convinced France that America had a genuine government in the making. The Articles of Confederation wasn't ratified by all 13 colonies until 1781.

5. The Articles of Confederation: America's First Constitution
· The 13 colonies were joined together for joint action in dealing with common problems such as foreign affairs.
· Congress had 2 major handicaps: It had no power to regulate commerce, and this loophole left the states free to establish conflictingly laws regarding tariffs and navigation. Congress couldn't enforce its tax collection program. The states were NOT required to pay the government taxes, they were merely asked.

6. Landmarks in Land Laws
· Land Ordinance of 1785- stated that the acreage of the Old Northwest should be sold and the proceeds should be used to help pay off the national debt.
· Northwest Ordinance of 1787- a uniform national land policy; created the Northwest Territories and gave the land to the government, the land could then be purchased by individuals; when a territory had 60,000 people, it might be admitted by Congress as a state, with all the privileges of the 13 other states.

7. The World's Ugly Duckling
· Britain declined to make any commercial treaty with the colonies or to repeal its Navigation Laws. Lord Sheffield argued in his pamphlet that Britain could win back America's trade.
· The British remained in the Americas where they maintained their fur trade with the Indians. The American states did not honor the treaty of peace in regard to debts and Loyalists. The British stayed primarily to keep the Indians on the side of the British so to defend against future attacks on Canada by the Americans.
· Spain was openly unfriendly to the Americans. It closed off the Mississippi river to commerce in 1784.

8. The Horrid Specter of Anarchy
· Shay's Rebellion- in western Massachusetts in 1786; when impoverished back-country farmers, who were losing their farms through mortgage foreclosures and tax delinquencies, attempted to enforce their demands of cheap paper money, lighter taxes, and a suspension of property takeovers; led by Captain Daniel Shays. The uprising was crushed but it left fear in the propertied class of mobs.

9. A Convention of "Demigods"
· In 1786, Virginia called for a convention at Annapolis, Maryland. There, Alexander Hamilton saved the convention from collapsing - delegates from only 5 states showed up. He called upon Congress to summon a convention to meet in Philadelphia the next year, not to deal with just commerce, but to fix then entire fabric of the Articles of Confederation.
· Alexander Hamilton was an advocate of a super-powerful central government.
· On May 25, 1787, 55 representatives from all of the states except for Rhode Island were sent to Philadelphia to talk of the government in the future of the country. (Constitutional Convention) George Washington was elected as the leader.

10. Patriots in Philadelphia
· The delegates hoped to save the revolutionary idealism and make it into a strong political structure.

11. Hammering Out a Bundle of Compromises
· Some of the delegates decided they would scrap the old Articles of Confederation, contradicting instructions from Congress to revise it.
· The "large-state plan" was proposed by Virginia and was first pushed forward as the framework of the Constitution. It said that the arrangement in Congress should be based upon a state's population.
· New Jersey presented the "small-state plan." It centered on equal representation in Congress without regards to a state's size or population.
· The "Great Compromise" of the convention was hammered out and finally agreed upon. It called for representation by population in the House of Representatives, and equal representation in the Senate. Each state would have 2 senators. The new Constitution also called for a President. Because of arguments over if the slaves would count towards the general population of the state, the "three-fifths compromise" was created. The new Constitution also called for the end of the slave trade by the end of 1807. All new state constitutions except Georgia's forbade overseas slave trade.
· Rhode Island was not present at the Constitutional Convention.

12. Safeguards for Conservatism
· The members of the Constitutional Convention agreed economically-demanded sound money and the protection of private property; and politically-favored a stronger government with 3 branches and with checks and balances among them.

13. The Clash of Federalists and Anti-federalists
· The Anti-federalists were led by Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, and Richard Henry Lee. The followers consisted of states' rights devotees, back country dwellers, and one-horse farmers - in general, the poorest class.
· Federalists were led by George Washington and Benjamin Franklin. Most of the Federalists lived in the settled areas along the seaboard. Overall, they were wealthier than the Anti-federalists, more educated, and better organized. They also controlled the press.

14. The Great Debate in the States
· Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South Carolina, and New Hampshire were the first 9 states to sign the Constitution. Virginia, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island were the only states to not sign it. (4 Laggard States)

15. The Four Laggard States
· Virginia, New York, and North Carolina all ratified the Constitution before it was put into effect. Rhode Island was the last state to ratify it and it did so only after the new government had been in operation for a few months.
· These 4 states did not ratify the Constitution because they wanted to but because they had to. They could not safely exist outside the fold.

16. A Conservative Triumph
· The architects of the Constitution contented that every branch-executive, judiciary, and legislative-effectively represented the people.
· By imbedding the principle of self-rule in a self-limiting system of checks and balances among these 3 branches, the Constitution settled the conflicting doctrines of liberty and order.

     

Chapter 10 

Launching the New Ship of State 

1789-1800

1. Washington for President

· George Washington was unanimously elected as President by the Electoral College in 1789. He took the oath of office on April 30, 1789. He established the cabinet.

· At first, Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton, and Secretary of War Henry Knox served under Washington.

2. Bill of Rights

· James Madison wrote the Bill of Rights and got them passed by Congress in 1791.

3. John Jay became the first Chief Justice. 

· The Judiciary Act of 1789 created the Supreme Court, with a chief justice and five associates, as well as federal district and circuit courts, and established the office of attorney general.

4. Hamilton Revives the Corpse of Public Credit

· In order to create a thriving federal government, Alexander Hamilton set out to create a plan to shape the policies of the administration in such a way as to favor the wealthier groups. These wealthier groups would then gratefully lend their money and political support to the government. The wealth in the government would then trickle down through society.

· In this plan, Hamilton persuaded Congress to fund the entire national debt at par, meaning that the federal government would pay off its debts at face value plus accumulated interest. This would strengthen the national credit by creating public confidence in the small Treasury department. 

· He then convinced Congress to take on the states' debts, which would create confidence in the government by the states. States with large debts, like Massachusetts, were delighted with Hamilton's proposal, but states with small debts, like Virginia, did not want the government to assume state debts. Virginia did, however, want the forthcoming federal district, the District of Columbia, which would bring commerce and prestige. So Virginia made a deal with the government: the government would assume state debts if the District of Columbia was placed on the Potomac River. The deal was passed by Congress in 1790.

5. Customs, Duties, and Excise Taxes

· One of Hamilton's objectives was to keep a national debt, believing that the more creditors to whom the government owed money, the more people there would be with a personal stake in the success of the government.

· In this objective, he expected tariff revenues to pay interest on the huge debt and run the government. 

· The first tariff law, which imposed a low tax of 8% on the value of imports, was passed by Congress in 1789. Its purpose was to create revenue and to create a small protective wall around small industries.

· He passed additional internal revenue and, in 1791, convinced Congress to pass an excise tax on a few domestic items, notably whiskey.

6. Hamilton Battles Jefferson for a Bank

· Alexander Hamilton proposed a Bank of the United States that could print paper money and thus provide a stable national currency. The national bank would also be place where the Treasury could deposit monies.

· Thomas Jefferson strongly opposed the Bank stating it was unconstitutional. He felt that the states had the right to manage their own money. Most of the opposition came from the south and most of the support came from the north.

· Hamilton prevailed and the 1st Bank of the United States was created in 1791. Its charter lasted for 20 years and was located in Philadelphia.

7. Mutinous Moonshiners in Pennsylvania

· The Whiskey Rebellion in Pennsylvania in 1794 was led by distillers who strongly opposed the 1791 excise tax on whiskey. The rebellion was ended when President Washington sent in federal troops. Although the troops faced no opposition, a strong message was sent by the government stating that it would enforce the law.

8. The Emergence of Political Parties

· Political parties had not existed in America when George Washington took office. 

· What was once a personal feud between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton had developed into a full-blown and bitter political rivalry.

· In the 1790s, Jefferson and Madison organized their opposition to the Hamiltonian program but confined it to Congress. In due time, this organized opposition grew and the two-party system emerged.

9. The Impact of the French Rebellion

· When Washington's first administration had ended in 1793, a formation of two political groups had ensued: Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans and Hamilton Federalists.

· The French Revolution started in 1789. It began peacefully but entered a violent phase when France declared war on Austria in 1792. Things started to get worse when King Louis XVI was beheaded in 1793, the church was attacked, and the head-rolling Reign of Terror was begun. 

· At first, the Federalists supported the revolution but that view suddenly changed when the attitude of the revolution changed.

10. Washington's Neutrality Proclamation

· Jeffersonian Democratic-Republicans wanted to get into the French and British War to fight for France. The Federalists were opposed.

· Washington issued the Neutrality Proclamation of 1793 stating the country's neutrality from the Britain-France war. He was backed by Hamilton.

11. Embroilments with Britain

· For years, the British had retained the frontier posts on U.S. soil, all in defiance of the peace treaty of 1783. The London government did not want to abandon the valuable fur trade in the Great Lakes region, and British agents openly sold firearms to the Miami Confederacy, an alliance of 8 Indian nations who terrorized Americans.

· The Jeffersonians felt that American should again fight Britain in defense of America's liberties. The Federalists opposed this action because Hamilton's hopes for economic development depended on trade with Britain.

12. Jay's Treaty and Washington's Farewell

· In a last attempt to avoid war, President Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay to London in 1794 to negotiate. Opposed by Democratic-Republicans, Jay hammered out a treaty, Jay's Treaty, in which the British promised to evacuate the chain of posts on U.S. soil and pay for damages for the seizures of American ships. Britain stopped short of pledging anything about future maritime seizures or about supplying arms to Indians. The treaty also called for the U.S. to continue to pay the debts owed to British merchants on pre-Revolutionary War accounts.

· Jay's Treaty caused Spain, which feared an Anglo-American alliance, to strike a deal with the U.S. In Pinckney's Treaty of 1795 with Spain, Spain granted the Americans free navigation of the Mississippi River and the large disputed territory north of Florida.

· In his Farewell Address to the nation, Washington urged against permanent alliances. He left office in 1797.

13. John Adams Becomes President

· John Adams beat Thomas Jefferson to become to the 2nd President in 1797.

· Hamilton became the leader of the Federalist Party, known as the "High Federalists."

14. Unofficial Fighting with France

· France was upset with Jay's Treaty and it started capturing American merchant ships. President John Adams sent John Marshall to France to negotiate in 1797. Hoping the meet Talleyrand, the French foreign minister, Adams's envoy was secretly approached by 3 go-betweens, later referred to as X, Y, and Z (Mme de Villette, Jean Conrad Hottinguer, and Lucien Hauteral). The French spokesmen demanded a bribe of $250,000 just to talk to Talleyrand. Angered by the intolerable terms, Marshall and the envoy returned to the U.S.

· Infuriated with the XYZ Affair, America began preparations for war: the Navy Department was created; the three-ship navy was expanded; the United States Marine Corps was reestablished.

15. Adams Puts Patriotism Above Party

· Because France did not want another enemy, it said that if the Americans sent another negotiator minister, then he would be received with proper respect.

· Napoleon Bonaparte was the dictator of France.

· Eager to free his hands of a potential enemy, the dictator of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, signed the Convention of 1800 with American representative John Jay. It annulled the peace treaty between France and America and called for France to pay the damage claims of American shippers.

16. The Federalist Witch Hunt

· In order to decrease the number of pro-Jeffersonians, the Federalist Congress passed a series of oppressive laws aimed at "aliens", or foreigners who came to America and supported Jefferson. 

· These Alien Laws raised the residence requirements for aliens who desired to become citizens from 5 years to 14 years. They also stated that the President could deport or jail foreigners in times of peace or hostilities.

· The Sedition Act stated that anyone who impeded the policies of the government or falsely defamed its officials would be liable to a heavy fine and imprisonment.

17. The Virginia (Madison) and Kentucky (Jefferson) Resolutions

· Jefferson's Kentucky resolution and Madison's Virginia resolution concluded that the states had the right to refuse laws created by the government. Virtually no other state followed the two states' resolutions.

18. Federalists versus Democratic-Republicans

· Hamilton Federalists supported a strong central government; they believed that the government should support private enterprise, not interfere with it; and they supported the British.

· Jeffersonian anti-Federalists demanded a weak central government and supported states' rights.