US History
Fort Burrows
9.3 -- Political Parties Emerge
READ pgs 287 – 290
Main Idea:
During the 1790s, two republic parties were formed: the Federalists and the
Republicans.
Vocabulary:
faction - opposing group within a party
unconstitutional - not allowed under the Constitution
Democratic Republican - supporter of Thomas Jefferson, who favored a
decentralized government
Federalist - supporter of the Constitution and Hamilton, who favored a strong
federal or national government
Setting the Scene:
When GW took office in 1789, the United States had no political parties. In fact,
most American leaders disliked even the idea of parties.
“ If I could not go to heaven but with a party, I would not go at all,”
said Thomas Jefferson.
Early on, though, political disagreements divided Americans.
“ Men who have been friends all their lives cross streets to avoid meeting
and turn their heads another way, lest they should be obliged to touch
their hats.” Thomas Jefferson
Before Washington left office in 1797, two rival political parties had emerged to
compete for power.
Did the development of political parties go against the motto of the new nation,
E pluribus Unum (“Out of many, one”) ?
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A Distrust of Political Parties
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Americans had reasons to distrust political parties
They had seen how factions worked in Britain often plotting to win gov’t favors
and bribes – personal gain over public good
Americans saw political parties as a threat to national unity
GW warned that parties would lead to “jealousies and false alarms”
Despite the warning, factions grew up around two Cabinet members
Hamilton and Jefferson differed in backgrounds, looks, personality and politics!
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Alexander Hamilton
born in the West Indies
worked his way up from poverty
dressed in fine clothes
spoke forcefully
energetic, brilliant and restless
enjoyed political debate
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Thomas Jefferson
born in Edge Hill, Virginia
tall and lanky
wealthy Virginia planter
dressed informally
spoke informally
Differing Views
s Hamilton and Jefferson quarreled about many issues that were rooted in their
different views about what was best for the nation
s Manufacturing or Farming (Economic Policy)
Hamilton
Jefferson
Encouraged manufacturing and trade Thought farmers, not merchants, were
backbone of the new nation
Wanted the US to model itself on
Wrote that “Cultivators of the Earth were the
Britain
most valuable citizens”
Favored growth of cities and
Feared a manufacturing economy would
merchant class
corrupt the US by concentrating power in the
hands of a small group of wealthy Americans
a Federal or State Power
Hamilton
Wanted federal gov’t to have greater power
than the state gov’ts
Argued that strong federal gov’t was needed
to increase commerce and restrain mob
violence like Whiskey Rebellion
Jefferson
Wanted a small federal gov’t to protect
individual freedom
Feared that strong federal gov’t might
take over powers that Constitution gave
the states
u Strict or Loose Interpretation of the Constitution
Hamilton
Jefferson
Preferred a loose interpretation of
Preferred a strict interpretation of the
the Constitution
Constitution
Constitution gave Congress the
Constitution did not give Congress the power
power to make all laws “necessary
to create a Bank – any power not specifically
and proper” to carry out its duties
given to the federal gov’t belonged to the states
Argued that the Bank was necessary Worried that a National Bank would give too
for the gov’t to collect taxes and pay much power to wealthy investors, who would
its bills
help run it, and to the gov’t
Opposed the law setting up the bank – claimed
it was unconstitutional
S Britain or France (Foreign Policy)
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Hamilton
Wanted close ties with Britain, a major
trading partner
Jefferson
Favored France, the first ally of the US
FEDERALISTS
Led by Hamilton
Wealthy and educated should lead nation
Strong central gov’t
Manufacturing, shipping and trading
Loose interpretation of Constitution
Pro-British
National Bank
Protective tariff
REPUBLICANS
Led by Jefferson
People should have political power
Strong state gov’ts
Agriculture
Strict interpretation of Constitution
Pro-French
National Bank unconstitutional
No protective tariff
Development of Political Parties
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Hamilton and Jefferson clashed in private
Congress started passing many of Hamilton’s programs
Jefferson and Madison decided to organize supporters of their views
In 1791, they went to NY to meet with leading NY politicians like Governor George
Clinton and Aaron Burr
s Asked for them to convince New Yorkers to vote for Jefferson’s supporters
a Republican or Federalists
u Jefferson’s supporters were called Democratic Republicans (Republicans)
s Included small farmers, artisans and wealthy planters
a Hamilton’s supporters were called Federalists
u Included merchants and manufacturers from Boston and NY and some
southern planters
¿¿ Why did different political parties develop ?
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u Newspapers Take Sides
u Number of newspapers doubled in 1700’s
s As party rivalry grew, newspapers took sides
a Gazette of the US backed Hamilton; National Gazette backed Jefferson
u Newspapers influenced public opinion and articles mixed rumor and opinion
with facts
s Emotional attacks and counterattacks fanned the flames of party rivalry
Election of 1796
u Political parties played a large role in the election of GW’s successor
s Republicans backed Jefferson for President and Aaron Burr for VP
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Federalists backed John Adams for President and Thomas Pinckney for VP
Election of 1796 had an unexpected outcome
Under the Constitution, the person with the most electoral votes became President
The candidate with the next highest total was made VP
John Adams, a Federalist, won office as President and Thomas Jefferson,
Republican, came in second to win VP
s Having the President and VP from opposing parties increased political tensions
a John Adams took office but events soon deepened the distrust between him and
Jefferson
Electoral Votes
Federalists
Republicans
Adams – 71
Jefferson – 68
Pinckney – 59
Burr – 30
1. Why did many Americans distrust the idea of political parties ?
a.________________________________________________________________________
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b. _______________________________________________________________________
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2. How did the views of Hamilton and Jefferson differ ?
Hamilton - ________________________________________________________________
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Jefferson – ________________________________________________________________
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3. Why did political parties develop ?
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4. How did the election of 1796 increase political tensions ?
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