3.

No quartering of soldiers in private homes

4. Freedom from unreasonable search and seizure

5. Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination, double

jeopardy (being tried twice for the same crime)

6. Rights of accused persons; for example, the right to a speedy and

public trial

7. Right of trial by jury in civil cases

8. Freedom from excessive bail and from cruel and unusual punishment

9. Rights not listed are kept by the people

10. Powers not listed are kept by the states or the people

The Washington Presidency

The Electoral College unanimously chose George Washington to be the first
president. Washington had not sought the presidency, but as the most popular
figure in the colonies, he was the clear choice, and he accepted the role out of a
sense of obligation.

Knowing that his actions would set precedents for those who followed him in
office, Washington exercised his authority with care and restraint. He
determined early on to use his veto only if he was convinced that a bill was
unconstitutional. He was comfortable delegating responsibility and so created a
government made up of the best minds of his time. Although the Constitution
does not specifically grant the president the duty or even the power to create a
cabinet, every president since George Washington has had one. The cabinet is
made up of the heads of the various executive departments, which have grown in
number over the years, and it functions as the president’s chief group of
advisors.

Prominent among his cabinet selections were Thomas Jefferson as secretary of

state and Alexander Hamilton as secretary of the treasury. These two men
strongly disagreed about the proper relationship between the federal government
and state governments. Hamilton favored a strong central government and
weaker state governments. Jefferson, fearing the country would backslide into
monarchy, or tyranny, favored a weaker federal government empowered mainly
to defend the country and regulate international commerce. All other powers, he
thought, should be reserved to the states.

Their argument was not a mere intellectual exercise. The new government was
still defining itself, and each man had a vision of what this nation was to
become. The debate came to the forefront when Hamilton proposed a National
Bank to help regulate and strengthen the economy. Both houses of Congress
approved Hamilton’s plan, but Washington, uncertain of the bank’s
constitutionality, considered a veto. In the debate that followed, the two main
schools of thought on constitutional law were established. On one side were the
strict constructionists, led by Jefferson and James Madison. They argued that
the Constitution allowed Congress only those powers specifically granted to it or
those “necessary and proper” to the execution of its enumerated powers. While
a bank might be “desirable” and perhaps beneficial, they argued, it was not
“necessary,” and thus its creation was beyond the powers of the national
government. Hamilton took the opposing viewpoint, framing the broad (loose)
constructionist position. He argued that the creation of a bank was an implied
power of the government because the government already had explicit power to
coin money, borrow money, and collect taxes. Hamilton put forward that the
government could do anything in the execution of those enumerated powers—
including create a bank—that was not explicitly forbidden it by the Constitution.
Washington agreed with Hamilton and signed the bill.

Hamilton’s tenure at treasury was a busy and successful one. Among his
achievements was his successful handling of the national debt accrued during
the war. Hamilton’s financial plan called for the federal government to assume
the states’ debts (further increasing the federal government’s power over them)
and to repay those debts by giving the debt holders land on the western frontier.
The plan clearly favored Northern banks, many of which had bought up debt
certificates at a small portion of their worth. Northern states also had more
remaining debt than Southern states, another reason why the plan drew
accusations that Hamilton was helping the monied elite at the expense of the
working classes. (Some issues are perennials of American politics; this is one of
them. Opposition to tax increases is another.) Hamilton was able to strike a
political deal to get most of his plan implemented. His concession was a
Southern location for the nation’s capital. In 1800, the capital was moved to
Washington, D.C., a city created to become the seat of government.

The Global Struggle for Independence

Historians often consider the American
Revolution a primary inspiration for the French
Revolution of the late 18th century. Likewise,
the Haitian slave revolt and various uprisings in
Latin America can be traced to the
philosophies espoused by the early Patriots
and Founding Fathers.

The French Revolution took place during the Washington administration, and it
too caused considerable debate. Jefferson wanted to support the revolution and
its republican ideals. Hamilton had aristocratic leanings and so disliked the
revolutionaries, who had overthrown the French aristocracy. The issue came to
the forefront when France and England resumed hostilities. The British
continued to be America’s primary trading partner after the war, a situation that
nudged the United States toward neutrality in the French-English conflict. Even
Jefferson agreed that neutrality was the correct course to follow. When French
government representative Citizen Edmond Genêt visited America to seek its
assistance, Washington declared the U.S. intention to remain “friendly and
impartial toward belligerent powers.” This was called the Neutrality
Proclamation. Genêt’s visit sparked large, enthusiastic rallies held by American
supporters of the revolution.

Historians cite the differences between Hamilton and Jefferson as the origins of
our two-party system. Those favoring a strong federal government came to be
known as Federalists (not to be confused with the Federalists who supported
ratification of the Constitution, even though they were often the same people),
while the followers of Jefferson called themselves the Republicans, later known
as Democratic-Republicans to avoid confusion with members of the
Republican Party created in the 1850s, a very different group which still survives
today. The development of political parties troubled the framers of the
Constitution, most of whom regarded parties as factions and dangerous to the
survival of the Republic.
 Our First Party System
Federalists Democratic-
Republicans
Leaders Hamilton, Washington, Jefferson, Madison
Adams, Jay, Marshall
Vision Economy based on Economy based on
commerce agriculture
Governmental Power Strong federal Stronger state
government governments
Supporters Wealthy, Northeast Yeoman farmers,
Southerners
Constitution Loose construction Strict construction
National Bank Believed it was Believed it was
“necessary” merely “desirable”
Foreign Affairs More sympathetic More sympathetic
toward Great Britain toward France

Note: The Federalist party would die out after the Hartford Convention, following the War of 1812.
Hamilton’s vision and programs would be carried out by the nationalist program and Henry Clay’s
American System during the Era of Good Feelings. The Second Party System would emerge during
the presidency of Andrew Jackson and would consist of the Whigs, who embraced many Federalist
principles and policies, and the Jacksonian Democrats, who saw themselves as the heirs of the
Jeffersonian Republicans.

Hamilton’s financial program not only stirred controversy in Congress and

helped to create our two-party system but also instigated the Whiskey Rebellion
in 1791, which began in western Pennsylvania when farmers resisted an excise
tax on whiskey. As part of his financial program, Hamilton imposed the tax in an
attempt to raise revenue to defray the debt incurred by the Revolution.
Washington, determined not to let his new government tolerate armed
disobedience, dispatched the militia to disperse the rebels. After the opposition
was dispelled, the rebels went home, and although there were some arrests and
two convictions, Washington eventually pardoned both men. The Whiskey
Rebellion is significant because, like Bacon’s Rebellion and Shays’s Rebellion
before it, the uprising demonstrated the lasting class tensions between inland
farmers and the coastal elites who ran the new government. But while Shays’s
Rebellion demonstrated that the national government of the time had lacked the
power to respond, Americans noted that the new government had power it
wasn’t afraid to use. Some saw fairness in Washington’s actions; others saw the
makings of tyranny. James Madison, among others, would retreat from his
support of the Federalists to back Jefferson’s camp of Democratic-Republicans.

After the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794, Washington sent John Jay to
England to negotiate a treaty concerning the evacuation of the British from the
Northwest Territory, as stipulated in the Treaty of Paris that concluded the
Revolutionary War, as well as to discuss British violations of free trade.
Although Jay’s Treaty prevented war with Great Britain, opponents of the
treaty believed Jay made too many concessions toward the British, who in
essence were not respecting our rights as a sovereign nation (the treaty also
involved paying some war debts). In 1796, Congress attempted to withhold
funding to enforce the treaty. The House of Representatives asked Washington
to submit all documents pertinent to the treaty for consideration. Washington
refused, establishing the precedent of executive privilege, which is the right of
the president to withhold information when doing so would protect national
security (e.g., in the case of diplomatic files and military secrets). Jay’s Treaty is
often considered to be the low point of Washington’s administration, and Jay
himself was burned in effigy in the streets of New York.

At the same time, Washington sent Thomas Pinckney to Spain to negotiate use
of the Mississippi River, duty-free access to world markets, and the removal of
any remaining Spanish forts on American soil. During this mission, Pinckney
was able to extract a promise from Spain to try to prevent attacks on Western
settlers from Native Americans. The Treaty of San Lorenzo, also known as
Pinckney’s Treaty, was ratified by the U.S. Senate in 1796 and is often
considered to be the high point of Washington’s administration.

The end of Washington’s presidency was as monumental as its beginning.

Wishing to set a final precedent, Washington declined to run for a third term. In
his famous farewell address, composed in part by Alexander Hamilton, he
warned future presidents to “steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion
of the foreign world.” Washington’s Farewell Address was published in
newspapers around the United States in the fall of 1796. It warned Americans
against sectional divisions, as well as political party conflict. The most
prominent portion of the address focuses on international relations, or “foreign
entanglements.” Washington promotes the notion of having friendly
relationships with all nations, but to avoid any permanent alliances. This
warning remained a prominent part of American foreign policy through the mid-
20th century, when the United States joined the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization in 1949.

Republican Motherhood
During the 1790s, women’s roles in courtship, marriage, and motherhood were
all reevaluated in light of the new republic and its ideals. Although women were
largely excluded from political activity, they had an important civil role and
responsibility. They were to be the teachers and producers of virtuous male
citizens.

While public virtue had been a strictly masculine quality in the past, private
virtue emerged as a very important quality for women, who were given the task
of inspiring and teaching men to be good citizens through romance and
motherhood. The idea here is that a woman should entertain only suitors with
good morals, providing more incentive for men to be more ethical. Women also
held a tremendous influence on their sons, leading advocates for female
education to speak out, arguing that educated women would be better mothers,
who would produce better citizens. Even though the obligations of women had
grown to include this new political meaning, traditional gender roles were
largely unchanged as the education of women was meant only in service to
husbands and family.

The idea of Republican Motherhood emerged in the early 1800s, as the

importance of education emerged in American society. The role of the mother
became more prominent in child-rearing, as mothers were now expected to raise
educated children who would contribute positively to the United States.

The Adams Presidency

The Electoral College selected John Adams, a Federalist, as Washington’s
successor. Under the then-current rules, the second-place candidate became vice
president, and so Adams’s vice president was the Democratic-Republican
Thomas Jefferson.

Following the Washington era, Adams’s presidency was bound to be an anti-

climax. Adams, argumentative and elitist, was a difficult man to like. He was
also a hands-off administrator, often allowing Jefferson’s political rival
Alexander Hamilton to take charge. The animosity between Jefferson and
Hamilton and the growing belligerence between the Federalists and Democratic-
Republicans set the ugly, divisive tone for Adams’s term.

Perhaps Adams’s greatest achievement was avoiding all-out war with France.
After the United States signed the Jay Treaty with Britain, France began seizing
American ships on the open seas. Adams sent three diplomats to Paris, where
French officials demanded a huge bribe before they would allow negotiations
even to begin. The diplomats returned home, and Adams published their written
report in the newspapers. Because he deleted the French officials’ names and
replaced them with the letters X, Y, and Z, the incident became known as the
XYZ Affair. As a result, popular sentiment did a complete turnaround; formerly
pro-French, the public became vehemently anti-French to the point that a
declaration of war seemed possible. Aware of how small the American military
was, Adams avoided the war (a war Hamilton wanted) and negotiated a
settlement with a contrite France although he was not able to avoid the Naval
skirmishes called the Quasi-War.

The low point of Adams’s tenure was the passage and enforcement of the Alien
and Sedition Acts, which allowed the government to forcibly expel foreigners
and to jail newspaper editors for “scandalous and malicious writing.” The acts
were purely political, aimed at destroying new immigrants’—especially French
immigrants’—support for the Democratic-Republicans. Worst of all, the
Sedition Act, which strictly regulated antigovernment speech, was a clear
violation of the First Amendment. In a scenario almost unimaginable today, Vice
President Jefferson led the opposition to the Alien and Sedition Acts. Together
with Madison, he drafted the Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions (which were
technically anonymous), which argued that the states had the right to judge the
constitutionality of federal laws. The resolutions went on to exercise this
authority they claimed, later referred to as nullification, by declaring the Alien
and Sedition Acts void. Virginia and Kentucky, however, never prevented
enforcement of the laws. Rather, Jefferson used the laws and the resolutions as
key issues in his 1800 campaign for the presidency. Even today, states often pass
resolutions similar to these to express their displeasure with the federal
government.

The Alien Act wanted to lengthen the amount

of time it took for immigrants to become
citizens (and thus eligible to vote) from 5 to 15
years. It also allowed the president to deport
any “dangerous aliens.”