Download Ch.6 Section 1

Chapter 6
Washington Heads the New
Government
New Government Takes Shape

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George Washington becomes the 1ST president of
the United States under the Constitution.
Unsure if the government could really function
based on the “will of the people”.
– No prior example to follow to create a working
government
– Washington/Congress had to make practical decisions
(i.e. raise revenue, provide for defense, etc.)
Judiciary Act

1st task addressed by Wash/Congress was creating
a Judicial System.
– Constitution authorized Congress to set up a federal
court system headed by a Supreme Court

Judicial Act of 1789
– This law provided for:
» Supreme Court consisting of a Chief Justice & 5 associate
justices.
» 3 federal circuit courts and 13 federal district courts throughout
the country (increased over time).
» One important provisions, allowed state court decisions to be
appealed to a federal court when constitutional issues were
raised.
Executive Branch
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In addition to a Judicial system, Washington also
needed to create an Executive branch (enforce
laws).
Initially, the Exe. Branch consisted of the
President and Vice President.
To help Congress created 3 executive
departments:
– Dept. of State - to deal with foreign affairs
– Dept. of War - to deal with military matters
– Dept. of Treasury - to manage finances
The Cabinet

Washington chose leaders he knew and
trusted:
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–
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–
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Thomas Jefferson - Secretary of State
Alexander Hamilton - Secretary of Treasury
Henry Knox - Secretary of War
Edmund Randolph - Attorney General
These department heads became the
president’s chief advisors, or Cabinet.
Hamilton vs. Jefferson

Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson
had different political ideas which caused
conflict.
– Hamilton believed in a strong central gov’t led
by a rich, educated elite.
– Jefferson favored strong state and local
governments led by a society of farmercitizens.
Hamilton’s Economic Plan


As Sect. of Treasury, it was Hamilton’s job to
manage the nation’s finances.
His plan set out to:
– Manage the country’s debt
– Establish a national banking system

Managing the country’s debt:
– Pay off foreign debt
– Issue new bonds to cover the old ones
– Wanted the federal government to assume debts of the
states
National Bank
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National Bank which would be funded by federal
government and wealthy private investors.
Bank of the United States would issue paper
money, handle tax receipts, and other government
funds.
This started a controversy over the Constitution:
– Strict interpretation - federal gov’t has very limited
powers
– Loose interpretation - favored greater federal powers

Hamilton convinced Washington/Congress and the
federal government to establish the Bank of the
United States.
Washington D.C.
To gain support of Southern states for his
debt plan, Hamilton suggested the nation’s
capital be moved to a new city in the South.
 This idea pleased Southerners because they
believed it would make the government
more responsive to their needs.
 In 1790, the nation’s capital was
constructed in District of Columbia, located
between Maryland and Virginia.

Political Parties
Continued arguments between Hamilton
and Jefferson divided the cabinet.
 Federalists - those who support Hamilton’s
vision of a strong central government
 Republicans - those who support
Jefferson’s view of strong state
governments
 This was considered a Two-Party System.

Whiskey Rebellion

Congress passed a Protective Tariff, an import
tax on goods produced in Europe.
– This encouraged American production which helped
bring in revenue.
– Hamilton wanted more. Excise tax, a tax on a
product’s manufacture, sale, or distribution, specifically
Whiskey.
– In1794, farmers refused to pay the tax, beat up federal
marshals in Pittsburgh and threatened to secede from
the Union.

Hamilton & federal troops sent to halt the rebels
and was successful.
Foreign Policy
Section 2

France and England resumed their war in
1793. America wanted to stay neutral.

Ohio Valley Conflict – the U.S. wanted to
expand westward. Britain was giving
ammunition to the Native Americans to
prevent this expansion. When U.S. troops
defeated the Native Americans at the Battle
of Fallen Timbers, the U.S. now had Ohio.
Relationship with Europe

French Revolution – the U.S. thought it was
a good idea to begin with, but then became
divided along party lines.

The U.S. signed treaties with Britain and
Spain to keep peace. Britain no longer had
any forts on U.S. soil and had free shipping
rights along the Mississippi River and
access to New Orleans.
Washington Retires

President Washington retired after his 2nd
term in office. A policy that would be
followed until the 1940’s.

John Adams narrowly defeats Thomas
Jefferson in the election of 1796. Jefferson
becomes Vice-President.
Federalist v. Democratic-Republicans

The two parties debated over foreign policy

Adams was not popular, he was honest and
dedicated, but lack tact.

X,Y,Z Affair – this lead to congress
expanding the Army and building war ships,
which then lead to more taxes on stamps
and land.
Alien and Sedition Acts

These acts were passed in 1798.

The Alien Act authorized the President to
arrest and deport immigrants who criticized
the federal government.
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The Sedition Act made it a crime for
citizens to publicly discredit the federal
government.
Virginia and Kentucky Resolution
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Both of these states were DemocraticRepublican states.

Jefferson and Madison helped write these
resolutions that declared the Sedation Act
unconstitutional.
Election of 1800
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Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr win the
election in 1800, defeating John Adams in a
very close election.

Actually Jefferson and Burr tied with the
same number of electoral votes. The House
of Representatives decided on Jefferson. In
1804 the constitution was amended to make
sure this did not happen again.