The Presidency of George Washington George Washington l

The Presidency of George Washington

George Washington l l 1789 - 1797 No political party affiliation Won 100% of electoral vote in both elections Established precedent of only serving 2 terms as president

Creating the First Cabinet & Establishing the Supreme Court

Alexander Hamilton l Washington’s Treasury Secretary l Wanted to build a financially strong and independent US, especially for American industry and businesses

Thomas Jefferson l Washington’s Secretary of State Former governor, congressman, and ambassador to France l Wanted to protect states’ rights, US-French relations l Resigned from the cabinet in 1793 due to his disagreements with Hamilton l

Henry Knox Washington’s Secretary of War l Tasked with building America’s ability to defend itself l Memorization device: Ft. Knox (in Kentucky) is named after him; forts are used in WAR) l Supposedly died from swallowing a chicken bone l

Edmund Randolph l Washington’s Attorney General l Later became Secretary of State after Jefferson’s resignation, but then forced to resign in 1795, due to scandal; he had been coaching the French government on how to manipulate President Washington, potentially an act of treason

The Judiciary Act of 1789 Passed by the First Congress l Established the Federal Court system l Made clear that the Supreme Court was the highest court in the U. S. l President Washington appointed John Jay to be the first Chief Justice l

John Jay l First Chief Justice (1789 -95) Federalist l Sent to England in 1794 -5 to negotiate Jay’s Treaty (more on that in a later) l Resigned from the court in 1795 to become governor of New York l

Alexander Hamilton vs. Thomas Jefferson

Hamilton’s Economic Plan Most states had many debts left over from the Revolution l Hamilton wanted the US to assume the states’ individual debts l US would pay these debts by taxing whiskey and imported goods l Hamilton also wanted to establish a national bank l

Constitutional opposition to Hamilton’s Plan Thomas Jefferson argued government did not have the constitutional power to create a bank (a strict interpretation of the Constitution) l Hamilton argued that the “necessary and proper” clause allowed the government to do what was necessary to perform its functions (loose interpretation) l

Southern opposition to Hamilton’s Plan Taxes on imported goods would hurt southern farmers l Many southern states had already paid their war debts l South agreed to support Hamilton’s plan only after North agreed to move the capital from New York City to a site on the Potomac River (Washington DC) l

Frontier opposition to Hamilton’s Plan Didn’t like tax on whiskey because that was how many frontiersmen made their living l This opposition led to the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 l

Whiskey Rebellion Pennsylvania farmers refused to pay whiskey tax and took up arms l Pres. Washington responded by leading the US Army in putting down the rebellion l Federal government demonstrated it could enforce its laws l

Federalists vs. Democratic -Republicans l l l l l Federalists Led by Alexander Hamilton Favored strong national government Favored large landowners and merchants Favored tariffs and government regulations that supported business Loose interpretationists More popular in the North Pro-business Favored neutrality in the war between Britain and France l l l l l Democratic-Republicans Led by Thomas Jefferson Favored strong state governments Favored small farmers Favored a “laissez-faire” approach where government did not regulate the economy Strict interpretationists More popular in the South Pro-farmers Favored France in their war against Britain