The New Republic

Government & Party Politics

Building the Federal Government

The new government started out with a national debt of $ million.

With no navy and an army of only around 400 men, the United States

was not respected by other countries.

Fortunately, the new government enjoyed extraordinary leaders.

In 1789, the new electoral college elected George Washington.

Massachusetts’s patriot was elected Vice President. There were few set rules to guide the administration. Quickly after taking office, Washington began setting important .

Judiciary Act of 1789

Washington and Congress tackled the creation of the

system. This law provided for a Supreme Court consisting of a

justice and five associate justices.

Section 25 of the Act, allowed state court decisions to be appealed to a federal court when constitutional issues were raised. This section guaranteed that federal laws remained “ .”

Executive Branch

In 1789, when Washington took office, the executive branch of the government consisted of only officials, the president and the vice president.

To help these leaders govern, Congress created 3 executive departments:

1. Department of 2. Department of 3. Department of

Left to Right:

George Washington President

Henry Knox Dept. of War

Dept. of Treasury

Thomas Jefferson Dept. of State

Edmund Randolph Attorney General

Hamilton’s Plan Stirs Debate

Alexander Hamilton was faced with the hard task of paying off the young

nation’s immense debts. As a , he believed that a strong

government was necessary to preserve the union.

As Hamilton developed his plans, he faced fierce and vocal

opposition from .

Hamilton despised the nation’s economy as backwards.

He wanted to quickly develop a and economy that could support a large federal government with a strong army and navy.

Hamilton asked Congress to charter a of the United States that could regulate state banks, strengthen the government and ensure business interests were closely aligned with those of the government.

Hamilton saw three great benefits from his system.

1.  Establish the nation’s financial .

2.  Buy political support from the wealthiest Americans, which he believed was essential for the government’s .

3.  It would enrich investors, which in turn would promote commercial and industrial .

Alexander Hamilton Federalist / Thomas Jefferson democratic republican
Concentrating power in government. / Sharing power with and local governments; limited national government.
Fear of mob rule. / Fear of absolute power or ruler.
Republic led by a well-educated elite. / Democracy of virtuous farmers and tradespeople.
interpretation of the Constitution. / Interpretation of the Constitution.
National Bank – (loose interpretation) / National Bank – (strict interpretation)
Economy based on shipping and manufacturing. / Economy based on farming.
Payment of national and state debts (favoring creditors) / Payment of only the national debt. (favoring debtors)
Supporters: Merchants, manufacturers, landowners, investors, lawyers, clergy. / Supporters: the “plain people” (farmers, tradespeople)

First Political Parties

President Washington tried to remain above the arguments

between and and to encourage them

to work together despite their differences.

Those who shared Hamilton’s vision of a strong central

government called themselves .

Those who supported Jefferson’s vision of strong state

governments called themselves .

(Later called themselves Democratic-Republicans – ancestors of today’s Democratic Party.)

Two-Party System –

Compromise over Capital

Congress approved the Federal government assumption of the state’s debt, the implementation of new and the creation of a national bank.

But in order to get southerners to agree to this, Hamilton promised that in ten years the

would be moved to the banks of the Potomac River. The new capital became known as Washington, .

Whiskey Rebellion

Hamilton passed an -excise tax on the manufacture of .

Whiskey was the main source of cash for frontier farmers and this tax enraged farmers in western .

These farmers refused to pay the tax. They beat up

federal marshals in Pittsburgh, and they even

threatened to from the Union.

Excise Tax –

The Whiskey Rebellion was an opportunity for the

government to show that it could

enforce the law along the western frontier.

Washington called up 15,000 militiamen and led

them part of the way. The rebellion was put .

Historical Significance: Was a milestone in the of federal power in domestic affairs.