REER - The Presidency (Lesson)

The Presidency

At the time of the ratification of the Constitution, the capital of the new nation was New York City (1785-1790.) George Washington was sworn in as the nation’s first president in April 1789 in New York City and by July 1790, the capital was moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at that time where it remained until May 1800 when the capital was then moved to Washington, D.C.

"Broad Street” by George Holland, 1797.

 

Presidency of George Washington

George Washington was unanimously 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 eight-year 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.

Washington's new government persuaded Congress to pass excise 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. 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. George Washington led 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. (Washington did not engage in combat. He rode part of the way and turned back---this was the first and last time a sitting president acted in a military capacity.)

 

Political Parties

Washington was the most influential and popular figure in the United States. He increased the prestige of his administration by making Thomas Jefferson his Secretary of State and Alexander Hamilton his Secretary of Treasury. Despite their talents and reputations, Jefferson and Hamilton had significant differences of opinion about the legitimate power of the United States government. Jefferson believed that the national government must limit its power to those areas described by the Constitution, while Hamilton wanted to expand the power of the government to stabilize the nation and its economy. When Washington announced he would not seek a third term as president, the two men and their supporters attacked one another and competed to replace him. Things got so bad that, in his farewell address, Washington warned about the dangers of political parties (factions).

 

Presidency of John Adams

The election of 1796 was a bitter contest between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson with Adams winning a close election. Like Washington, 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 and he 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. Jefferson and Madison then argued that states could refuse to enforce federal laws they did not agree with. This was the beginning of the states' rights concept.

A comparison of the two views follows:

At a Glance:

	Hamilton	Jefferson
Constitution	Loose interpretation of Constitution	Strict interpretation of Constitution
Government	Strong power held by national government Government led by elite with good educations Fear of mob rule	Limited power shared by states and localities Government led by farmers and tradespeople with good virtues Fear of over-powerful government
Economics	Industrial economy Paying off national & state debts National bank constitutional Trade with Great Britain Supported tariffs and plans that favored manufacturers	Agricultural economy Paying off national debt only National bank unconstitutional Trade with France Supported issues important to farmers
Supported by	John Adams New England & middle states Bankers Clergy Landowners Lawyers Manufacturers Merchants	James Madison Southern states and rural areas Farmers Trades People Urban immigrants

 

 

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