The whole point of America becoming its own sovereign country was Britain’s overbearing control on the colonies. Many early Americans had concerns and feared a government in which, by design, could become too strong. Consequentially, the Democratic – Republican party (later known to historians simply as the Republican Party) was formed with ideas of smaller government and thusly, less control. A semblance of the rivalry between the parties in the United States could be seen in the French Revolution. The Republicans supported the popular forces in the French Revolt and wanted America to assist.
The Articles of Confederation were created as a new central government form after the American Revolution. The Articles still consisted of problems, specifically financial ones. Hamilton proposed a plan that would put U.S. finances on a stable foundation. He planned to lower national debt and strengthen the national credit because he believed that "a national debt was a national blessing". However, some people, such as Jefferson and small farmers opposed his ideas, because they believed in states' rights and a strict interpretation of the constitution, which led to the split of two different political parties.
Moreover, the Federalist and Democratic-Republicans differed in their views on foreign affairs. As the war in Europe between Britain and France carried on, the United States was put into a dilemma about what to do. In a letter to Eliot Brown, Thomas Jefferson said “the embargo, giving time to the belligerent powers to revise their unjust proceedings…while these edicts are in force, no American can ever consent to a return of peaceable intercourse with those who maintain them”. To keep the United States out of the war between the two European nations, Thomas Jefferson, who was a Democratic-Republican, enforced the embargo act which did not allow trade for the United States.
What were the major arguments that surfaced in opposition to the new Constitution proposed in 1787? How did supporters of the Constitution counter those arguments? Before the Constitution was proposed in 1787, under the Articles of Confederation, there was no control of the country; debt was piling up and there was no enforcement of taxes. Many arguments surfaced in opposition to the new Constitution, but the main concern had to do with the concept of a “president” where there was a single executive leader and centralized government, and that there was no bill of rights. Supporters of the constitution countered these arguments by adding some safeguards in some cases and also by thoroughly explaining the limited powers that the leader and government would have and the necessity for a strong central government.
The Embargo Act of 1807 is perhaps the most contradictory decision Jefferson has made in his presidency. Due to impressments of America sailors into the British Army, as well as Great Britain and France both trying to hinder American trade with the other side, Jefferson passed the act which prohibited all foreign trade, to and from the United States. This obliterated any views he was believed to have of a weak central government. The
Washington, like most other Federalists during the French Revolution, wanted to keep out and have the country stay to itself. They believed that especially right after the revolution, America did not have a strong enough military force to contribute or put on the line, and also wanted to become closer with the British once again due to their strong trade market. While the Anti-Federalists, like Jefferson, wanted to have an active support of the French due to the Franco-American Treaty of 1778. Washington believed this was too large of a danger for the country though this seemed to further the separation between the Jeffersonian and Hamiltonian
11 October 2011 Jefferson and Madison In the early 1800's Jefferson and Madison made great accomplishments during their presidencies. After the country began to develop into a successful democratic nation political parties began to form. There were the Jeffersonian Republicans led by president Thomas Jefferson and the Federalists led by James Madison, who later stopped being a federalist after the ratification of the constitution. Jefferson and Madison didn't value the same ideas of how the government should be ran. Jefferson and the Jeffersonian Republicans believed that the authority of the federal government was based on a strict constitution.
Federalists, on the other hand, believed in broadly adhering to constitution, characterizing them as broad constructionists. This allowed the Federalists to make decisions that were not clearly supported by the constitution, ultimately giving the government more power than the constitution. While the Federalists and Republicans were thought as very diverse parties, their beliefs ended up crossing during the presidencies of Jefferson and Madison. Therefore, from 1801 to 1817 while the Federalists were considered to be broad constructionists and Republicans strict constructionists, they both went astray from their beliefs so each party could do what was best for themselves and, most importantly, the country. From 1801 to 1809, during the presidency of Jefferson, it was the first time that the Republicans and Federalists didn't abide by the ordinary ideals each group previously followed.
The Second Bank of the United States was created after the War of 1812 and was seen by many as the reason for the panic of 1819. Willentz states that “Jackson perceived the bank, by its very design, undermined popular sovereignty and majority rule.”(361). Biddle was the president of this bank and wanted the 2nd charter to be linked to the federal government but at the same time could use the money for its own purposes. Biddle’s presidency of the bank again highlights those whom it does not benefit from its concentrated control in the elite such as farmers and workers. At the start of his second term of presidency, Jackson vetoed the charter of the second bank.
So the tug-of-war between the president and Congress is a special part (271). The framers had never envisioned that the presidency of the United States of America would become such a democratic office. They were afraid of tyranny and the pressure of the public opinion and made the Electoral College in a way that its members would be chosen in a manner decided by the state legislatures (270). They realized that the instead of letting the people elect the members, the state legislatures would elect the members by themselves. The electors from the states would than elect the country’s president from the leading citizens.