The Struggle Over Foreign Policy
Washington Declines Presidency (1796)
- Washington declines to run again for
Presidency (he wins reelection in 1792)
- believed nation needed him to set an
example by walking away- proving that he was
no king.
- his retirement after two terms sets a
precedent by all Presidents until 1940s.

1796 Presidential
Election
- President: John
Adams (Federalist)
- Vice President:
Thomas Jefferson
(Democratic
Republican)

The Alien and Sedition Acts (1798)
- authorized the President to arrest and deport
immigrants who criticized the federal government.
- used to silence Democratic Republic
opposition
- made it a crime for citizens to publicly
discredit the federal government
- made it difficult for immigrants to become
citizens (many supported Democratic Republicans)
