Book Review Of Hamilton's Blessing By Alexander Gordon

The creation of the first national bank in the United States was of utmost importance in setting precedence for how much power the constitution actually grants the government. The debate over whether to create a national bank raised many questions over the constitution that hadn’t been tested before. It also raised questions about what the government can do when the constitution has no written clause on a certain subject. In looking at the arguments from Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson regarding a national bank, people can find out more about how some of the leading founders of the Constitution wanted to see the United States government run.

At this time the government was funding its debt through private banks such as the Bank of North America and the Bank of New York. Not satisfied with the structure of American banking, Hamilton reported to Congress the need to establish a National Bank in December of 1790. The Senate created a committee to study Hamilton’s proposal. On the committee were men who shared Hamilton’s ideas in fiscal matters, and that of a strong federal government. One of the members, General Schuyler, was Hamilton’s father in law. It was of no surprise that a bill arose out of the committee supporting Hamilton’s plan to incorporate a Bank of the United States.

During George Washington’s presidency of our new nation, there was a large disagreement between his Secretary of Treasury, Alexander Hamilton and his Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson on several economic and political challenges.To get the nation out of extreme debt, Hamilton came up with a financial plan that included the creation of a national bank. This national bank would be a safe place to deposit government funds, a source of loans for the government and businesses, and the creation of a national mint. However, Jefferson was strongly opposed to the idea of a national bank, he believed it was strictly against the Constitution and would give the federal government too much power. Hamilton argued that Article I Section 8 of the Constitution

In the book Hamilton’s Blessing, Gordon uses economic history and theory to explore the start, rise and decline of the United States debt. Gordon opens his book by stating that this country was born in debt, and this debt has become so high that concerned individuals no longer think of it. Throughout the book, he traces the history of the national debt dating back from 1791, when the central bank of the United States was created, up to modern days. The intellectual architect of this creation was Alexander Hamilton, the first Treasury Secretary as well as a central figure who had a deep impact on the economic development of the United States. The title of the book clearly recalls Hamilton's statement that a national debt, "if not excessive,

Since raising revenue in the United States was one of the first economic issues the Federalists were up against, a solution to national debt had to be found and agreed upon. During the Federalist’s struggle, James Madison was a federalist who was

The recent clash between the president and congress about raising the debt ceiling made the front page on every newspaper throughout the country and generated controversy of unimaginable proportion among the citizens of the United States of America (College for Financial Planning). No macroeconomics issue is more controversial today than the impact of large public debt on the economy and on future generations, but, however, there appears to be a huge disconnect between professional, political leaders, and the ordinary public about the national debt and its impact on the current and future

Many United States' citizens are unaware of the country's current financial state. Many assume that one of the world's wealthiest countries could never be in debt. This is untrue however, and, in fact, the country with the greatest income per capita is in major debt. This study will examine possible solutions to reducing the United States' national budget deficit.

One of Jefferson’s and Hamilton’s first disagreements began with the idea of a National Bank. Hamilton suggested that the government should create the Bank of the United States Jefferson protested because this was not allowed by the Constitution. Hamilton opposed the view of Jefferson and stated that the Constitution’s writers could not have predicted the need of a bank for the United States. Hamilton said that the right to create the Bank of the United States was stated in the “elastic” or the “necessary and proper” clause in which the Constitution gave the government the power to pass laws that were necessary for the welfare of the nation. “This dilemma revisits the ever lasting dispute between the “strict constructionists” (Jefferson) who believed in the strict interpretation of the Constitution by not going an inch beyond its clearly expressed provisions, and the “loose constructionists” (Hamilton) who wished to reason out all sorts of implications from what it said”. Just a few years later, under President Jefferson, the federal government of the United States

“Ten Trillion and Counting,” presented by Frontline provides quite a picture of America’s national debt as it surpasses the trillion dollar mark. They ponder the financial well being of current and future retirees while also exposing on how America got into this mess, and what the Obama administration plans to do during his term. America is able to close the gap year to year in its national budget by selling bonds and T-bills. Foreigner countries who continually purchase these obligations are beginning to grow. Much like the Bush administration, the Obama administration has started borrowing big with plans to cut the budget years down the road. It is clear for anyone to see that this borrowing and the future promises of cutting cannot go

There have been many controversies since the United States declared independence in 1776. One of the many domestic issues that divided American citizens was developing the First National Bank in the late 1700s. Hamilton was in favor, while Jefferson opposed and American citizens chose their side based on what they believed what was best for the country. Hamilton proposed a Report on a National Bank in December of 1790 announcing what the National Bank would include. Hamilton’s proposal included, “The bank’s stock would be worth $10,000,000. 20,000 shares would be sold privately at $400 per share ... 5,000 shares or $2,000,000 of bank stock would be bought by the U.S. government. The bank would be run by a 25-man board of directors - 20 chosen by the shareholders and 5 by the government. The bank’s president would be elected by the board of directors. Notes and bills (money) issued by the bank would be redeemable on demand ... and would be accepted by the U.S. government for all payments due. The bank’s charter would run for 20 years and would be subject to renewal by Congress. The bank would be allowed to establish branch offices in other cities; its main branch would be in Philadelphia, the nation’s capital” (http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/teachers/lesson_plans/pdfs/unit3_ 4.pdf). Although the first part of the bank bill, establishing a national mint, did pass with ease, supporters and opposers debated the rest of the bill, which included the development of

Hamilton saw the United States as an emerging power that would surpass Great Britain and all the other European countries. Hamilton’s vision of the American economy included the need for a financial institution known as the national bank which was based on the Bank of England. Hamilton believed a national bank would

Jefferson and Hamilton had a long feuded debate in regards to matters such as the creation of a national bank as well as the method in which the constitution will be interpreted. Hamilton believed in the necessity of a national bank as well as a liberal reading of the Constitution. Whereas, Jefferson was opposed to the idea of a federal bank and thought that the constitution must be read strictly. In the argument, Jefferson was more correct than Hamilton. Jefferson held the idea to only pay off national debt and that the government essentially owns debtors. A modern example of this is the debt held by the United States, which is estimated to amount to $22.4 trillion by the end of 2016. This large amount of money owed, shows the significance of paying national debt because the amount has grown and keeps growing to be almost impossible to pay off. Hamilton wanted payment of state debt as well, however this would have caused a division between the states. Many of the southern states had already paid off their debt, whereas the northern states had not. By paying off the state debts,

We hear about the debt almost every day: news talks about it, politicians argue about it, even President Obama gives speeches on it. So what is the significance behind it? In this article I am going to explain briefly what the national debt is, how big it is, and what it has to do with us.

After the new United States Congress finished its first undertaking of making a Bill of Rights, it turned its regard for the issue of financing the new government. President George Washington delegated Alexander Hamilton as the Treasury Secretary, and Hamilton volunteered build up a monetary structure for the United States that would give people in general trust in the administration's budgetary affairs.As he defined his arrangement, Hamilton utilized a free elucidation of the Constitution, trusting that what the Constitution did not particularly deny, it permitted. He likewise trusted that a solid focal government was basic to energize trade and industry and to counteract turmoil inside America's outskirts. This point of view molded his

In the American nation, he developed love of regulation, efficiency and organization. Hamilton strongly showed that America must possess credit for the development of government operations, trade, industry and business activities. He stressed the importance of the central government to take over the debts of the state that were unpaid in the Revolutionary period (Scott, 2008). The central government was endorsed by the American Constitution to charge and collect taxes as well as pay liabilities (Robertson, 2005). Such operations can be professionally handled by a central bank. Therefore, Hamilton was characterized by thinking creatively and critically as he observed the potential of the trade industry’s immense power (Pancake, 1974).