The New Republic -Government & Political PartyChapter 6 – Section 1

Chapter 6 – Section 1 Vocab

• administration • precedent • Cabinet • tariff • loose construction • strict construction • Whiskey Rebellion • political party • Democratic Republican

Building the Federal Government

Problems for the New NationNational debt of $52 million

a huge burden for a nation with a farm economy and only about 3million people.

No navy and an army of only around 400 men, Not respected by other countries.

At New Orleans, the Spanish closed the Mississippi River to American trade.

Along the Great Lakes, the British kept forts within American territory.

Electing a President

“About ten o’clock I bade farewell to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to domestic felicity, and with a mind oppressed with more anxious and painful sensations than I have words to express, set out for New York.” — George Washington, April 16, 1789 In 1789, the new electoral college unanimously elected Virginian George Washington as

President of the United States. Massachusetts patriot John Adams was elected Vice President. The first administration, or the officials in the executive branch of government,

A President, a Vice President and about a dozen clerks. A newly elected Congress Few set rules to guide the administration.

The first government would set important precedents, or acts or statements that become traditions to be followed.

Setting Up the Judiciary

The Constitution called for one Supreme Court and several smaller ones, but intentionally left to Congress the details of organizing a federal court system.

Judiciary Act of 1789. Established a judiciary, or a system of courts.

thirteen federal district courts, one for each state. To hear appeals from the state courts

six-member Supreme Court would decide contested cases. also served as a trial court in certain cases involving states or foreign affairs.

Office of Attorney General to prosecute and defend cases on behalf of the federal government.

John Jay - the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

Setting Up the Cabinet

One of Washington’s most important precedents Formation of a Cabinet, or the group of federal leaders who

headed the major departments of the executive branch and advised the President. The first four executive departments

State - Thomas Jefferson - conducted foreign policyTreasury - Alexander Hamilton - managed the nation’s finances. War – Henry Knox - supervised national defensethe Attorney General.

Hamilton’s Plans Stir Debate Secretary of Treasury – Hamilton’s job was to pay off the huge

debts and set a course of economic security. Benefits from his plan.

First, establish the nation’s financial credibility making it easier to borrow money in the future

Second, political support from the wealthiest Americans Third, promote the accumulation of capital needed for commercial and industrial growth

intended to redistribute wealth in two ways: from farmers to merchants from the South to the North

About eighty percent of the nation’s debt was owed to merchants in the seaport cities of the Northeast During the 1780s, they had bought up notes issued by the Congress or by the states to pay those debts, the federal government would tax the American people, who were mainly farmers

Handling the National Debt

Rather than pay down the debts using cash reserves, fund the Treasury by selling government bonds,

pay annual interest to the holders. Hamilton proposed new excise taxes and high tariffs, or taxes on imported

goodsraise revenue for the federal government and protect struggling American manufacturers from foreign competition. asked Congress to charter a Bank of the United States regulate state banks, strengthen the national government, and ensure that business interests were closely aligned with those of the

government.

Opposing Hamilton (Federalist v Anti-federalist)

Opposition to Hamilton’s plans grew in the South overwhelmingly agricultural, - able to pay off their state debts.

Resented the idea that they pay federal taxes to bail out the northern states Felt their tax dollars would only benefit creditors in the Northeast.

Interpreting the Constitution To justify his program, Hamilton interpreted the Constitution broadly,

“implied powers” and its clause empowering Congress to enact laws for the “general welfare.” His broad interpretation, or loose construction, Critics of his plan

Jefferson and Madison - favored a strict construction, or limiting the federal government to powers explicitly granted by the Constitution.

Feared that a national bank would benefit the North at the expense of the South, argued that the Constitution did not authorize Congress to charter a National Bank

The Whiskey Rebellion

In western Pennsylvania, mountains made it difficult to transport bulky bushels of grain to eastern markets. distilled their grain into whiskey Rural farmers hated the excise tax on whiskey In 1794, farmers resisted the tax by intimidating and attacking tax collectors. Hamilton saw it as an opportunity to demonstrate the new power of the

nation by suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion and sent 12,000 militiamen The rebellion quickly dissolved.

A Two-Party System Emerges

The Whiskey Rebellion highlighted the growing division The federal government - sought to secure its power and authority. the opposition grew stronger The Federalists blamed the rebellion on political clubs - Democratic Societies.

formed to oppose the Federalists. Washington criticized them as an attempt to destroy the government and create discontent Jefferson and Madison defended the societies, - protected society from a strong federal As debate over the rebellion continued, the two sides gradually emerged as distinct political groups.

Political Parties Compete for Power

The authors of the Constitution wanted to avoid organized political parties, or groups of people who seek to win elections and hold public office in order to shape government policy. They deemed these groups to be “factions” that threatened the unity of a republic.

Two parties formed: the Federalists, led by Hamilton and John Adams

Northerners, especially merchants, tended to favor the Federalists. the Democratic Republicans, a political party led by Jefferson and Madison.

southerners, especially farmers, voted mainly for the Democratic Republicans. Federalists and Democratic Republicans could be found in every social class, community, region, and state. The first two Presidents and most of the governors, state legislators, and congressmen were Federalists. Their electoral

success indicates that many common voters shared Federalist values. Voters credited the Federalists with the new Constitution, the nation’s increased prosperity and stability during the 1790s. Many common people continued to support the Democratic Republicans. worried that the Federalists would concentrate wealth and power in the hands of the elite. Many voters also believed that the Democratic Republican Party offered more social mobility