ELECTION OF 1800
• Jefferson was running
against Adams
• It was believed by the
Democrats that Burr would
be Jefferson’s Vice
President
– Thomas Jefferson
(Democratic-Republican)
– John Adams (Federalist)
– Aaron Burr (DemocraticRepublican)
ELECTION RESULTS AND CONSEQUENCES
• At this time, the Constitution (2.1.2) stated that the person
who received most votes would be President, and the
second-most votes would be Vice President
• Jefferson and Burr tied in electoral votes
• Burr realized he could be President and refused to concede
to Jefferson
• After 35 ballots, Alexander Hamilton convinced members of
his party to hold their vote
– He knew this would help Jefferson
– Familiar with Jefferson’s position on political issues
– Personally did not like Burr
• Burr lost the election. Members of his own party were angry
at his actions / refusal to concede
• Burr – Hamilton animosity grew until they met each other in a
duel in 1804, where Burr killed Hamilton
JEFFERSON TAKES OFFICE
• Thomas Jefferson elected as the 3rd President
• Jefferson supported a more democratic style in
politics and government
• Democratic = all people have the same rights
“Educate and inform the whole mass of the
people. Enable them to see that it is in their
interest to preserve peace and order, and they
will preserve them…”
Thomas Jefferson letter to James Madison 1787
• Different than John Adams and
JEFFERSON’S
George Washington
PERSONAL
– Quiet private dinners instead of
DEMOCRATIC
formal functions
STYLE
– Casual clothing and no wigs
– Greeted people by shaking their
hand
• Carried the democratic belief into
politics
– Did not attempt to punish the
Federalists
– Did not remove Federalists from
public office
– Equal laws protect equal rights
REPUBLICANS SHRINK THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT - ECONOMICS
• Jefferson and Albert Gallatin – his Secretary of
Treasury – both believed in the ideas of Adam
Smith
• Government could be reduced through more
careful management of assets
• And, they believed in the policy of LAISSEZ
FAIRE economics
– Laissez Faire = hands off
– Laissez Faire economics = government
should let the market work without
interference / little to no regulation
• Free Market = a market
where goods and services
move / are exchanged
without government
interference
• Opposite of Hamilton’s
view that the role of
government was to
promote trade and
manufacturing
• But, they did keep the
Bank of U.S. and continued
to pay old debts
LAISSEZ FAIRE
ECONOMICS
Adam Smith
OTHER REPUBLICAN REDUCTIONS
• A less active role in matters between states
• Decrease in the size of executive departments
• Reduce the cost of the federal budget so did not
need as much money to run the government
– Congress repealed the Whiskey tax
• Reduced the size of the army and navy
– Many people still had strong feelings against
having standing armies from the days when the
British army occupied the country
• Asked that Congress restore the old laws of
citizenship, so Congress eliminated the Alien and
Sedition Acts
FEDERAL JUDGES AND POLITICS
• Judiciary Act of 1801 - passed by the Federalist Congress created 16 new federal judgeship positions
• Before leaving office Adams filled the positions
– The “Midnight” judges
• Democrats were angry about creating the jobs and “packing”
the judiciary with Federalists
• The new Democratic Congress repealed the 1801 law,
eliminating most of the new positions
• However, one person appointed who could not be removed was
John Marshall - Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
• He is a strong Federalist who will use the Supreme Court to
develop the judicial branch of government
MARBURY VS MADISON (1803)
• Marbury was a Federalist appointed by John Adams
on his last day in office, to be justice of the peace in
D.C.
• The new government did not want the appointment
• New Secretary of State James Madison would not
deliver the official appointment papers giving
Marbury the job
• Marbury sued Madison for not delivering the papers
and insisted Supreme Court force Madison to turn
over the papers
• According to the Judiciary Act of 1801, only the
Supreme Court could decide a case that involved a
federal official
SUPREME
COURT
DECISION
• Marshall agreed with Marbury on
his right to the job
• But, ruled against Marbury in the
lawsuit
THE ARGUMENT OF THE
RULING:
• The Constitution does not give the
Supreme Court the right to decide
on jobs / these types of issues
• So, Congress could not “give” that
right to the Supreme Court by
passing a law
• Therefore, the Judiciary Act of 1801
was unconstitutional
STRENGTHENING OF THE JUDICIARY
• Precedents set:
• JUDICIAL REVIEW established
– ONLY the Supreme Court has the power to
decide whether laws passed by Congress
were constitutional
– It can reject laws it believed were
unconstitutional
• Power of the Judiciary defined / strengthened
– The Marbury v Madison decision helped
develop the power and authority of the
Supreme Court and the judiciary branch of the
federal government
WHY DO YOU SUPPOSE JOHN MARSHALL
INSISTED ON INCREASING THE POWERS OF
THE JUDICIARY?
(a) To protect the rights of Americans from state
governments
(b) To ensure the Judiciary would be more
dominant than the other two branches of
government
(c) To provide more balance of power among
the three branches of government