Download Federalist Presidential Administrations

The Federalist Presidential
Administrations
(1789-1801)
The First Electoral College
As of December 15th, 1788, 11 of the Original
Thirteen States had ratified the Constitution
(Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Georgia,
Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, South
Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, New York) and
thus were eligible to select Electors for the election
of the First President of the United States.
Sixty-Nine electors were appointed from 10 states
(New York failed to appoint electors in time)
Breakdown of the First Electoral
College
State
# of Electors
Delaware
3
Pennsylvania
New Jersey
Georgia
Connecticut
10
6
5
7
Massachusetts
10
Maryland
South Carolina
New Hampshire
6
7
5
Virginia
10
New York
0
How Appointed
state divided into electoral districts and electors
elected by public in districts
elected by voters statewide
Appointed by State Legislature
Appointed by State Legislature
Appointed by State Legislature
2 chosen by state legislature, rest chosen from
leading vote receivers in each Congressional
District
elected by voters statewide
Appointed by State Legislature
elected by voters statewide
state divided into electoral districts and electors
elected by public in districts
Appointed by State Legislature (but the
Legislature was deadlocked, and so no one was
chosen in time)
The First Election
Electors voted for two individuals on the ballot (for 138 total votes cast), and with no
campaigning, the electors could vote for whomever they felt would do a good job in
this unprecedented position. The results were as follows:
George Washington (Va.), 69 votes
John Adams (Mass.), 34 votes
John Jay (NY), 9 votes
Robert Harrison (Md.), 6 votes
John Rutledge (SC), 6 votes
John Hancock (Mass.), 4 votes
*George Clinton (NY), 3 votes
Samuel Huntington (Ct.), 2 votes
John Milton (Ga.), 2 votes
James Armstrong (Ga.), 1 vote
Benjamin Lincoln (Mass.), 1 vote
*Edward Telfair (Ga.), 1 vote
(* denotes Anti-Federalist)
The First Congress
• The first US Senate sat 22 Senators (20 Federalists and 2
Anti-Federalists)
• The first House of Representatives sat 59 Representatives
(48 Federalists and 11 Anti-Federalists)
• Congress was supposed to meet for the first time at Federal
Hall in NYC on March 4th 1789, but due to travel difficulties,
the first Congress sat in session for the first time in April
1789 (the House on April 1st with the first order of business
being the election of Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania
as the first Speaker of the House, and the Senate on April
6th with the first order of business being the election of
John Langdon of New Hampshire as the first President pro
tempore of the Senate)
Election Certification and Inauguration
• With both Houses meeting in legal session on
April 6th, the Congress certified the election of
George Washington as the first President of
the US and John Adams as the first Vice
President
• On April 30th, George Washington was
Inaugurated as the First President of the
United States (Chancellor of New York Robert
Livingston administered the oath of office)
Washington’s Inauguration
Washington’s First Inauguration
Fellow Citizens of the Senate and the House of Representatives.
. . . On the one hand, I was summoned by my Country, whose voice I can
never hear but with veneration and love . . .On the other hand, the
magnitude and difficulty of the trust to which the voice of my Country called
me . . .
. . .[I]t would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official Act, my
fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the Universe . . .
No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which
conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States.. . .
. . . [T]hat the foundations of our National policy will be laid in the pure and
immutable principles of private morality; and the pre-eminence of a free
Government, be exemplified by all the attributes which can win the affections
of its Citizens, and command the respect of the world.
. . .[I]t will remain with your judgment to decide, how far an exercise of the
occasional power delegated by the Fifth article of the Constitution is rendered
expedient at the present juncture by the nature of objections which have
been urged against the System, or by the degree of inquietude which has
given birth to them.. . .
. . . I should renounce every pecuniary compensation.. . ..
Washington’s First Cabinet
• Secretary of State – Thomas Jefferson (Va.)
• Secretary of the Treasury – Alexander
Hamilton (NY)
• Secretary of War – Henry Knox (Mass.)
• Attorney General – Edmond Randolph (Va.)
• Postmaster General – Samuel Osgood (Mass.)
[Never officially a Cabinet Post]
Precedents set in Washington’s First
Term
• Washington selected the title of “Mr. President,”
rather than “Your Highness” as a way to seem as
one of the people
• Formal state dinners show the trappings of
Government, but without Royal affectations
• Capital of United States to be built in time at a
properly and thoughtfully selected location to be
determined; NYC and Philadelphia each act as
temporary Capital (NYC Mar 4 1789 – Dec 5 1790;
Phila. Dec 6 1790 – May 14 1800)
Jefferson vs. Hamilton
Jefferson
Hamilton
Jeffersonian Policies (Anti-Federalists) - also
known as Democratic-Republicans
Hamiltonian Policies (Federalists) - also known as
Federalists
Power should be used rarely by central gov't states should be stronger than Federal
Federal Gov't must be strong to focus progress main job of Gov't is to forward notions of
progress and industry
Small farms and towns as ideal American
situation - allows for personal relationships
Cities as ideal - growth of country depends upon
expansion of population
Ordinary citizens only need guidelines to live
their lives - no need for government to have any
real role in our lives
Constitution must be used as is directed - there
is no room for interpretation - any powers not
specifically stated in Constitution belongs to
states
Government should be run by wealthy and
educated - people who have the knowledge to
aid us in progressing towards future
Constitution was written by men who could not
have imagined all situations to arise - the
Constitution must be considered to be "flexible
and elastic" with implied powers
The Judiciary Act of 1789
• While it is true that the Constitution framed the
Judicial Branch, there was no real concrete plan to
determine how the branch would actually work
• Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, which called
for the following:
 A Supreme Court made up of 1 Chief Justice and 5
Associate Justices (this would eventually be
increased to 8 Associate Justices)
 3 Federal Circuit Courts
 13 Federal District Courts
It also allowed cases heard in State courts to be appealed
to Federal Courts when Constitutional issues were raised
Financial Issues trouble the Nation
• According to the 1790 Report on the Public Credit, Alexander Hamilton
calculated that the US National debt stood at $77 million ($40 million in
debt to domestic lenders/former soldiers, $12 million in foreign debt, and
$25 million in debts owed by the states)
• Hamilton’s plan to pay down the debt required the following steps:
 An issuance of new bonds to replace the old bonds already in
circulation (or a purchase of the bonds, held by people who could not
afford to wait, at market value – usually 1/5th of face value)
 Establishment of a tariff designed to collect money solely to pay off the
national debt
 No governmental borrowing of money until 4% of the national debt was
paid off
 The establishment of the [First] Bank of the United States, which would
issue paper money and be the financial face of the US government
• Even with the austerity measures in place, the Annual National Budget
saw fully 40% of annual spending directed to paying down the debt
Washington D.C.
• The biggest difficulty in convincing the states to buy
into the Federal Government’s debt plan was the fact
that several southern states were effectively debt free
(agrarian states such as the Carolinas and Virginia were
able to pay down their debts faster due to tariffs
placed cash crops during the Confederacy period)
• In order to convince these states to get on board,
Hamilton convinced President Washington to establish
a new Capital city in the south. Land was taken from
both Virginia and Maryland (on the banks of the
Potomac River), and a plan was designed by Pierre
L’Enfant and Benjamin Banneker to build a majestic
capital city.
The Whiskey Rebellion
•
•
•
•
•
In an effort to increase the amount of money brought in by taxation, Hamilton
proposed (and Congress passed) an excise tax on Whiskey, but refused to impose a
tax on land sales to speculators (such as President Washington).
Most distillers of whiskey were western farmers of small farms who grew corn and
could not make money by selling the corn before it rotted, so instead distilled
whiskey and sent that east for profit for $16 per keg of whiskey.
The new tax angered these farmers, who refused to pay the tax collectors, and
threatened to rise up in rebellion (like Nathaniel Bacon or Daniel Shays).
However, President Washington called up 12,950 federal soldiers (militia members
from the states of New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia), marched to western
Pennsylvania, and scattered the “rebels” without any loss of life – showing the
nation that armed uprisings would be stopped by the power of the Federal
Government
150 rebel leaders were arrested, with two being convicted of Treason. President
Washington pardoned the two leaders, John Mitchell and Philip Weigel, reasoning
that both men had been swept up by the fervor of the region, and were not the
actual initiators of the pseudo-insurrection.
The French Revolution
•
•
•
•
•
France, which had been suffering from the worst famine in recent memory, was
suffering from great economic woes due to the lavish spending of the King and
Queen, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette
When the Estates-General was convened to meet, at first the First and Second
Estates (the Nobility and the Clergy) refused to work with the Third Estate and so
the Third Estate began to work on its own to create a new constitution for France.
The First and Second Estates eventually relented and joined the Third Estate to
govern, but the delays involved led to open rioting and near Civil War.
Eventually, the fervor for Civil War was turned outwards (towards the nations of
Austria and Britain) as well as inwards towards the Nobility.
Unlike the American Revolution, the French Revolution was an attempt to
completely remake society (and thus had ideas of levelling society in ways which
terrified many, including Washington and Hamilton)
Washington would have been pleased to have retired after his first term, but due
to fears of the spread of the warmongery of the French Revolution, Washington
agreed to serve a second term as President of the United States (if elected, of
course)
Citizen Genêt
• In 1792, President Washington issued a Proclamation of Neutrality,
refusing to become entangled in the war between Britain and France
• After the French executed King Louis XVI, they appointed Edmond-Charles
Genêt to be France’s new Ambassador to the United States
• Genêt landed in Charleston, South Carolina and immediately began to
attempt to commission American ships to attack British shipping on the
Atlantic Ocean, purchase munitions to send back to France, and to enlist
volunteers to invade Spanish Florida (all actions which were completely
contrary to the rules of decorum for Ambassadors in Foreign Nations)
• After meeting with President Washington in Philadelphia and being
warned of the ramification of his actions, Genêt continued to purchase
weapons and recruit soldiers to invade Florida
• Washington demanded France recall Genêt, which occurred in early 1794.
Realizing that a recall would probably mean his execution by the everchanging French Government, Genêt requested political asylum and
settled in New York as private citizen
The Near-War with Britain
• Contrary to the Treaty of Paris of 1783, British soldiers had yet to
evacuate the Forts of Detroit and Niagara
• The British, fearful that the Proclamation of Neutrality was issued
as a cover for Americans to sell grain and supplies to all sides of the
war in Europe, issued Orders in Council which banned all
commercial links between America and the French and French
Caribbean – basically making it legal for British warships to stop
American commercial vessels believed to be trading with France.
These interdictions almost always included impressment –
kidnappings and forcing sailors to labor aboard British ships
• The fear of impressments led to the limiting of trans-Atlantic trade,
which meant farmers could not sell their abundant supplies of
grain, and port workers were basically out of work. This, along with
desires to help our “Republican brothers-in-arms” in France, led to
calls for war against Britain (which Washington refused to heed)
Jay’s Treaty
•
•
•
•
Chief Justice John Jay was sent to negotiate a treaty with Britain, which was completed on
November 19, 1794.
Jay’s Treaty, which was rather unpopular with most of the United States, called for:
 “A firm inviolable and universal Peace”
 Withdrawal of British troops from all Forts in the Northwest Territories (as had been agreed to
in 1783)
 Britain would pay compensation for any damage done in the capture of American ships
 The US would receive “most favored nation” status in trade with Great Britain and her colonies
– with any port fees charged of American ships in British ports being equal to any port fees
charged of British ships in American ports
 Both Britain and the United States would guarantee any outstanding debts owed to
British/American merchants dating from Revolutionary War period (and would pay debts where
circumstances demanded out of national treasuries)
Jay, when asked to comment as to the effectiveness of this treaty, claimed that “It breaks the ice”
– that it was the first step towards normalizing relations with Britain
The US Senate ratified the Jay Treaty with a vote of 20-10 (all 20 affirmative votes were from
Federalists, while all ten dissenters were Anti-Federalists, or as they were now calling themselves,
Democratic-Republicans)
Pinckney’s Treaty
• South Carolinian Thomas Pinckney was sent to Spain at the same time as
John Jay was negotiating his treaty in London.
• US farmers in the west were still being prevented from utilizing the
Mississippi River and port of New Orleans to ship their goods
• Fearing the US and Britain would negotiate a peace and then act at the
expense of Spain, Spain concluded “The Treaty of Friendship, Limits, and
Navigation between Spain and the United States” on October 27, 1795
• The treaty saw Spain redraw the border between Spanish Florida and the
US at 31 degrees north latitude, and the western boundary of the territory
became the Mississippi River
• The United States was granted complete and unhindered access to the
Mississippi River and the Port of New Orleans without having to pay any
taxes or port fees
• The Spanish agreed to eliminate all guarantees it had made for military
support of native Americans in any disputes with the United States
States Added under Washington
• In 1789, North Carolina ratified the Constitution
and became the 12th state
• In 1790, Rhode Island finally ratified the
Constitution, becoming the 13th state
• In 1791, the State of Vermont was added to the
Union (it was made up of land contested by both
New Hampshire and New York)
• In 1792, Kentucky joined the nation as the 15th
state
• In 1796, Tennessee joined the nation as the 16th
state
Native American Wars - I
• From the beginning of Washington’s first term, one of the highest
priorities was to eliminate the threat of violence on the frontier from
Native Americans (It also must be noted that Washington continued to
harbor a distrust of Native Americans – dating back to the French and
Indian War)
• Arthur St. Clair was appointed the first Governor of the Northwest
Territories (he was also a Major General in the US Army)
• He received permission from Congress to have a standing army of 1000
soldiers, and 1500 militia members called up from Kentucky, Pennsylvania,
and Pennsylvania
• In September 1790, General Josiah Harmar led 1450 troops into Miami
and Shawnee territory to show the strength of the US by destroying crops
and villages (and prevent future attacks by the tribes)
• In October, Harmar and his men were attacked by a war party of Miamis,
Pottawattamies, and Shawnees – 500 Americans were killed before the
rest were able to retreat. Native American attacks on the frontier
continued, and attempts to initiate peace talks failed.
Native American Wars - II
• Frustrated with the inability to develop peaceful relations with Northwest
Territory Natives, President Washington ordered General St. Clair to
personally take command of the troops and initiate another military push
• On November 4 1791, General St. Clair led 2000 troops on a direct assault
on the Miami village on the Wabash River in present-day Illinois – 1500
Native Americans led by Mishikinakwa (Little Turtle) of the Miami and
Weyapiersenwah (Blue Jacket) of the Shawnee defeated the American
Army, killing over 500 troops and decimating the “Federal Army”
• President Washington removed General St. Clair from command in the
region, claiming that the Army had been allowed “to be cut to pieces,
hacked, butchered, and tomahawked”
• St. Clair retained the Governorship of the Northwest Territories, but
Command of the Army was given to Major General “Mad” Anthony Wayne
Native American Wars - III
•
•
•
General Wayne trained his army (The Legion of the United States) over the winter
of 1793-1794 at the newly constructed Fort Recovery (built on the grounds of St.
Clair’s ignominious defeat)
On August 20th, General Wayne and his army of 1700 regulars and 1500 Kentucky
militia men defeated over 2000 Native Americans under the leadership of Blue
Jacket of the Shawnee at the Battle of Fallen Timbers. In point of fact, only about
150 men died on either side of the Battle. However, this battle ended the
Northwest Territory Wars, as the British refused to back any of their former Native
American allies and so the Native Americans were forced to negotiate a peace
treaty.
Almost a year later, twelve Native American tribes signed the Treaty of Greenville
with the United States (August 3, 1795). The Treaty of Greenville established small
pockets of reserved Native American lands in the Northwest Territories while
seeing the vast majority of those lands permanently granted to the US. Native
American Tribes were given $9500 ($1000 each for the seven largest tribes and
$500 for the remaining five tribes), and a great many of these tribes relocated to
Canada or further west into the Louisiana Territory.
Washington’s Farewell Address I
• While, then, every part of our country thus feels an immediate and
particular interest in union, all the parts combined cannot fail to find in
the united mass of means and effort greater strength, greater resource,
proportionally greater security from external danger, [and] a less frequent
interruption of their peace by foreign nations . . .
• I have already intimated to you the danger of parties in the State, with
particular reference to the founding of them on geographical
discriminations. . . .
• If, in the opinion of the people, the distribution or modification of the
constitutional powers be in any particular wrong, let it be corrected by an
amendment in the way in which the Constitution designates. But let there
be no change by usurpation . . .
• Promote then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for the
general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a
government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion
should be enlightened.
Washington’s Farewell Address II
•
•
•
•
•
[Avoid] likewise the accumulation of debt, not only by shunning occasions of expense but by
vigorous exertion in time of peace to discharge the debts which unavoidable wars may have
occasioned, not ungenerously throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to
bear. The execution of these maxims belongs to your representatives, but it is necessary that public
opinion should co-operate. . . .
Observe good faith and justice towards all nations; cultivate peace and harmony with all. . . .
The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial
relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible. So far as we have already
formed engagements, let them be fulfilled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop. Europe has a
set of primary interests which to us have none; or a very remote relation. . . .
It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world; so
far, I mean, as we are now at liberty to do it; for let me not be understood as capable of patronizing
infidelity to existing engagements. I hold the maxim no less applicable to public than private affairs,
that honesty is always the best policy. I repeat, therefore, let those engagements be observed in
their genuine sense. But, in my opinion, it is unnecessary and would be unwise to extend them.
The duty of holding a neutral conduct may be inferred, without anything more, from the obligation
which justice and humanity impose on every nation, in cases in which it is free to act, to maintain
inviolate the relations of peace and amity towards other nations.
The Election of 1796
• With Washington’s retirement from public office, the
election of 1796 stood as a referendum on Washington’s
Federalist Presidency – would the electors wish to continue
to trust the Federalists, or would the DemocraticRepublican viewpoint win?
• The build-up to the election saw newspapers publish
editorials extolling the virtues of either of the “candidates”
over the other (it was seen as unseemly to publically
declare one’s intention to become the President while
Washington still held that position) – DemocraticRepublicans claimed Adams was interested in recreating an
aristocracy in the country, while Federalists claimed
Jefferson was an atheist whose allegiances were towards
the radicals in France
The Votes
•
With 138 electors voting in the election of 1796, the results were as follows:
John Adams (Mass.), 71 votes
Thomas Jefferson (Va.), 68 votes
Thomas Pinckney (SC), 59 votes
Aaron Burr, (NY), 30 votes
Samuel Adams (Mass.), 15 votes
Oliver Ellsworth (Ct.), 11 votes
George Clinton (NY), 7 votes
John Jay (NY), 5 votes
James Iredell (NC), 3 votes
George Washington (Va.), 2 votes
John Henry (Md.), 2 votes
Samuel Johnston (NC), 2 votes
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (SC), 1 vote
Adams and France
•
•
Within days of Adams’ inauguration, France sent a message to the President,
refusing to accept the American Ambassador to France – Charles Cotesworth
Pinckney of South Carolina. The French Government, at this time a five-member
panel called The Directory, not only refused to receive Pinckney (they were hoping
a Democratic-Republican with pro-French leanings would be appointed to the
position), but also launched an undeclared war against US shipping. Within a few
months, over 300 American ships were captured by the French navy
The citizens of the US began to call for war, which Adams felt the US was not ready
for. Adams requested the Congress authorize the establishment of a navy and to
set aside funds in case it should come to all-out war against France. Congress
divided along partisan lines, but ultimately authorized the continued construction
of 6 Frigates (the USS United States, USS Constellation, USS Constitution, USS
Chesapeake, USS Congress, and USS President) and the establishment of an entire
Navy department. Adams also dispatched Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts and
John Marshall of Virginia to join Pinckney in Paris in an effort to restart peace talks
with the French.
The XYZ Affair
•
•
•
Most diplomacy in Europe at the time was a combination of public and selfinterests. It was commonplace for bribes to change hands before negotiations
began. The US recognized this, and the three delegates were prepared to pay a
bribe to initiate talks, but the events which ensued were almost comical.
French Foreign Minister Charles Maurice de Talleyrand (a former member of both
the nobility and the clergy – he was also a Bishop) had survived in France at a time
when most of his peers (both members of the aristocracy and members of the
clergy) had fled or been executed. The fact that Talleyrand would serve in the
position of Foreign Minister under The Directory, the Bonaparte Empire, and in
fact act as the Foreign Minister under the restored Bourbon Monarchy speaks
volumes as to Talleyrand’s ability to survive
“Agents” for Minister Talleyrand met the American delegation in the Paris Hotel
where they were staying, claiming that the Minister was too busy to meet with
them. However, should the Americans be so disposed as to pay $250,000 for
Talleyrand’s time and arrange a loan of $10-$12 million for France, Talleyrand
would be willing to meet and discuss terms of friendship. These agents, described
through posterity as Agents “X,” “Y,” and “Z,” were met with the response of “No,
no, not a sixpence” from Ambassador Pinckney and the Quasi-War with France
was initiated (Congress never officially declared War on France)
The Alien and Sedition Acts
• Due to fears that French revolutionary fervor would overtake the
Democratic-Republican portion of the population, Congress passed a
series of laws which can only be described as reactionary.
• The Naturalization Act and Alien Friends Act of June 1798 became known
historically as the Alien Act. The Alien Act extended the time needed for
one residing in the country to become a citizen (from 5 to 14 years) and
allowed the US Government to deport anyone who was deemed
dangerous (basically anyone who used pro-French rhetoric). No one was
actually deported, but many French citizens left the US before they could
be.
• The Sedition Act of July 14 1798 allowed the Government to fine or
imprison anyone who wrote or spoke out against the actions taken by the
US Government. 17 people were tried under the Sedition Act, including
Philadelphia Aurura editor Benjamin Franklin Bache who was accused of
spreading “false, scandalous, and malicious” speech against the
Government and Vermont Congressman Matthew Lyon who spent 4
months in jail for continuing to criticize the Adams administration.
Fries’ Rebellion
• In 1799, auctioneer John Fries of southeastern
Pennsylvania organized non-violent protests in an effort to
repeal taxes imposed due to the expenses of constructing
the Frigates for the Quasi-War
• Like the Whiskey Rebellion, Federal troops were dispatched
to the region to quell the protests (and unlike the Whiskey
Rebellion, most of the protesters were arrested)
• Fries, as leader of the “rebellion” was tried twice for
treason, and convicted both times. Sentenced to death,
Fries’ sentence was pardoned by President Adams (in the
same manner Washington did with the Mitchell and Weigel
of the Whiskey Rebellion, but at the cost of many Federalist
supporters)
The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
•
•
•
•
Vice President Jefferson, at first, counseled his fellow Democratic-Republicans to
remain patient while he secretly wrote a Resolution which was taken up by the
Kentucky Legislature (James Madison wrote a similar Resolution for Virginia) – the
Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions claimed the power of the states to nullify any
federal laws deemed Unconstitutional by declaring those federal laws “null and
void” within that state’s jurisdiction.
Nullification by state legislature is a Constitutionally valid manner for the states to
check the power of the Federal Government (especially at a time when the US
Supreme Court had yet to recognize the immense power of Judicial Review)
Federalists saw the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions as attacks on the Federal
Government, and on the power of the Constitution – and yet Congress allowed the
Alien and Sedition Acts to lapse at the end of their effective period
Most dangerous of all in this situation was the fact that the Vice President of the
United States was acting in direct opposition to the government in which he
served
The End of the Quasi-War
•
•
•
•
Adams’ Administration decided that a change in negotiators with France was
necessary, replacing Charles Cotesworth Pinckney with William Vans Murray. As a
result, Adams also had to replace his Secretary of State, Timothy Pickering, who
was pro-war with France. Adams’ new Secretary of State was his political ally John
Marshall. Added to this was Adams’ difficulties in dealing with private citizen
Alexander Hamilton, who was publically pro-war with France, and became so
entrenched in acting for his own financial gains that Adams described Hamilton as
being “a man devoid of every moral principle.”
The negotiating team of William Vans Murray, Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth, and
former NC Governor William Richardson Davie, were also faced with the internal
political struggles within France – 1799 saw The Directory replaced by The
Consulate (a Republic under the control of three Consuls – Napoleon Bonaparte,
Jacques-Régis de Cambacérès, and Charles-François Lebrun).
Once France straightened out its political situation (temporarily), Napoleon
dispatched his brother Joseph Bonaparte, along with Charles-Pierre Claret Fleurieu
and Kerre-Louis Roederer, to negotiate a peace with the United States
The Convention of 1800 (also known as the Convention of Mortefountaine) ended
the Quasi-War
The Judiciary Act of 1801
• The Judiciary Act of 1801 reorganized the still new Judicial
Branch – the act reduced the size of the Supreme Court
from six justices to five. The Act also created six judicial
circuits, with sixteen justices to preside over those seats.
• The idea in creating the six new circuits was to remove the
Supreme Court Justices from “riding the circuit,” – with the
lack of federal justices, the Supreme Court justices were
required to hear cases on the Federal Court circuits when
necessary.
• When this Act was passed (February 13, 1801), it granted
Adams a final opportunity to place Federalists in the new
judgeships. Overall, Adams appointed sixteen Federalist
judges over the final 19 days of his term – an event referred
to historically as the “Midnight Appointments.”
The Election of 1800
• Unlike previous elections, the fourth Presidential Election saw
campaigning by candidates (as well as newspapers endorsing those
same candidates) – Democratic-Republicans heartily endorsed their
candidates (Thomas Jefferson for President and Aaron Burr of NY
for Vice President), while Federalists did the same (John Adams for
President and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney of SC for Vice
President).
• What was notable about this election was it saw, for the first time
editors reported malicious stories about the candidates – Federalist
newspapers reported rumors that Jefferson had fathered a child by
a slave woman, while Democratic-Republican newspapers reported
that John Adams was a secret monarchist who wished to establish a
perpetual aristocracy with himself and his family at the center.
• At the beginning of the partisan sniping in December 1799, news of
President Washington’s death at Mount Vernon spread. With his
death, the nation mourned, and factionalism spread unabashedly.
The Votes
• With 138 electors voting in the election of 1800 (no new states had
been added), the votes were cast in the Electoral College as follows:
Thomas Jefferson (Va.), 73 votes
Aaron Burr (NY), 73 votes
John Adams (Mass.), 65 votes
Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (SC), 64 votes
John Jay (NY), 1 vote
(The plan within the Democratic-Republican party throughout the
states was for each Democratic-Republican Elector to vote for
Jefferson-Burr, with one leaving Burr off the ballot for another
candidate – as no one was told that they were to be the one who did
not vote for Burr, every elector voted for him. Burr was not trusted by
the Democratic-Republican Party, but was considered influential
enough in New York to swing that state to the Democratic-Republican
side)
The House decides the Election
•
•
•
•
•
With a tie in the Electoral College, the election was to be decided by the lame-duck House of
Representatives (the House as it was constituted in 1800, not the newly elected one – which meant
that there were men who had been voted out of office deciding the fate of the Nation). The House
voted only on the choice of the top two candidates – Jefferson and Burr, and voted by state, with
the winner needing to receive 9 state votes.
Each state’s Representative had a vote within that state’s contingent, and those votes would
determine the entire state’s vote (In New York, for example, there were 10 Representatives – during
the votes, Jefferson would defeat Burr 6 votes to 4, giving NY to Jefferson each time).
Over the span of seven days (February 11 to February 17, 1801), the House voted 35 times – the
first 34 times saw Jefferson beat Burr 8 states to 6 (with Maryland and Vermont deadlocked each
time 4-4 and 1-1, respectively, and thus not casting votes) but not receiving enough votes to win
the Presidency.
Alexander Hamilton spoke to Federalist members of the House before the 35th vote, convincing
them that Aaron Burr was “a dangerous man of too much ambition and too little morality.” In the
35th vote, the Representatives of Delaware, Maryland, South Carolina, and Vermont who had voted
for Burr changed their votes to blank, giving Maryland and Vermont to Jefferson (and leaving
Delaware and South Carolina without a vote) so Jefferson could win the election 10-4 with 2
abstentions
Burr would not forgive Hamilton for his actions, eventually leading to accusations of perfidy and
adultery and a duel of honor.
The aftereffect of the Election of 1800
• The 12th Amendment to the Constitution was proposed in Congress
on December 9 1803, and ratified on June 15 1804. This
Amendment changed the way electors voted – no longer would the
person with the most votes become President and second most
become Vice President – as of the ratification of this Amendment,
each Ballot would be cast for a President and a Vice President. The
Vice Presidential candidates must meet the same criteria as those
candidates for President.
• In the case of a tie: if the tie is for the Presidency, the House of
Representatives votes on the top three Presidential electoral vote
receivers; if the tie is for Vice President, the Senate votes on the top
two Vice Presidential electoral vote receivers
• [The Eleventh Amendment, passed in 1794, removed the ability of
the states to claim sovereign immunity, and thus allowed citizens to
sue states directly]