Securing A Republican Political Economy

In the early 19th century the two dominant political parties, the Jeffersonian Republicans and the Federalists, had many opposing beliefs. With respect to the federal constitution, the Jeffersonian Republicans were viewed as strict constructionists who were opposed to the broad and lenient constructionism of the Federalists. The Jeffersonian Republicans were supported by commoners and the middle class. In general, they favored limiting the power of the national government, they believed that farming should serve as the backbone of the economy based on agriculture, and they supported the cause of the French Revolution. Contrary to such beliefs were those of the Federalists who were supported by the wealthy and aristocrats. Federalists, who

After the colonies gained independence, the founding fathers soon found that becoming a new independent nation was going to be a difficult task. The biggest task was deciding on the division of power in the government. This issue divided the people into two groups, the federalists and the Jeffersonian republicans. Alexander Hamilton led the federalists and Thomas Jefferson led the republicans. These two important men in history would later show how the challenges of becoming a new nation. In this essay I will be analyzing the ideas of Linda K. Kerber’s “The Fears of the Federalists,” to Drew R. McCoy’s “The Fears of the Jeffersonian Republicans.” Furthermore, comparisons will be made about both essays to gain a better understanding of the struggles of government in early America.

America is an incredibly vast, diverse country, and has been this way for hundreds of years. The sheer size of America, even when it was only composed of thirteen states with a total population of nearly three million people (Brutus, essay 1, p. 64), concerned many Americans in the 1780s, due to this inquiry: was America simply too large for a republican style government to work? Many anti-federalists claimed that republics could only work on a small scale, while the federalists believed that having a large republic was the only way to go and would be beneficial to the public good. Before this time, history furnished no examples of a well-functioning republic as big as America, so the federalists and anti federalists were stepping into a completely new untouched territory.

This book emphasizes the alternative interpretations offered by Americans on the origins of the Constitution. Holton’s purpose with this book was to show that the framers interests involved making America more attractive to investors. In order to do so, they purposefully made the government less democratic with the writing of the Constitution. However, with the addition of the Bill of Rights, one could argue the Framers had at least a slight concern for the American people and their civil liberties.

During the last decade of the eighteenth century, the Federalists were in control of the country and its policies. They passed laws to make a strong central government and some of them even desired for there to be a kind of landowner aristocracy. Their power soon began to erode from within as different factions headed by John Adams and Alexander Hamilton greatly weakened the party's effectiveness and power. They alienated themselves in the eyes of the population by passing the Alien and Sedition acts. This led to the election of Thomas Jefferson as president in 1800, who described his election as a second revolution. Jefferson and his supporters were now able to try to bring about their dream of making America an agrarian republic of small

The book A Magnificent Catastrophe, by Edward J. Larson, narrates a story about how dirty and devious America’s first presidential campaign of 1800, how it became the most powerful election and how it molded America’s future in today’s society. Adams and Jefferson two great friends that shared one common goal. It is to obtain America’s freedom against the motherland Great Britain. They have remained close coworkers and friends throughout the American Revolution, but then in the 1800 each went thru their separate ways and had their own political parties and different ideologies. One believed that solitary “effective central government led by a powerful president could forge a stable, secure nation from a multiple of weak, wrangling states” (Larson, 2007, 17) and called themselves Federalist led by John Adams. Adams believed that America should have only one strong influential president that is in control of the nation. He does not want to give people too much power because he does not want them to have a lot of freedom. On the other hand, one wants America to be the “land of free, prosperous farmers and workers” (Larson, 2007, 17) called themselves Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson saw America as a country that is for the people. The people of the U.S is the President and that all people are born with individual rights. An individual rights that the government couldn’t restrict just because they wanted to control the people and create a central government. The

First, when the political parties emerged in the 1790’s it was evident that their ideologies were vastly different. The Republican Party wanted a representative form of government that functioned “in the interest of the people.” This party, led by Thomas Jefferson, supported a limited central government, with individual states retaining a majority of the control. Jefferson’s vision was for a nation of farmers, and farmers do not need big government to survive. They feared a large central government would take away the rights of the people. On the other hand, the Federalist Party, led by Alexander Hamilton, supported a strong central government that would pursue policies in support of economic growth, which in turn would provide the freedom the people wanted. Hamilton’s followers also supported a diverse economy.1 It is important to note here however, that both parties knew they would have to become national parties in order to win any elections and both parties had followers in the north and in the south. There was no sectional divide in the parties.

Since the creation of the United States Constitution, the many leaders of our nation took different roles in trying to attain perfectionism for their country. From the federalist views of John Adams to the democratic views of Jefferson, America was experiencing the endeavor that was being a young nation in the midst of the 19th century. The emergence of John Quincy Adams in 1820 started an “Era of Good Feelings” with exceptional political advancements and economic achievements. While Jackson’s democratic views were not always what were expected, during his presidency, the country grew national and world attraction. Through periods of boom and bust, political and economic changes in America undeniably helped reshape society between the years 1820 and 1848 with the emergence of new and innovative advancements.

The early years of the Constitution of the United States were full of political strife. The two prominent political ideals were complete opposites. The Jeffersonian Republicans were focused on giving power to the people and maintaining a pastoral economy, while the Federalists supported the control of the government by the elite class, and maintaining “positive” democracy. Both parties feared the influence and effect the other party would have on the public. In Linda K. Kerber's article, “The Fears of the Federalists”, the major concerns Federalists held in the early 19th century are described. Ever since the war with and separation from England, the citizens of America were seen to be continually drive to “patriotic rebellion” as a way to

What Republicanism did was try to keep the peace. This was especially ture regarding slavery. Lastly, the economic growth changed america and the way everyone saw her. It brought more trade items, business, money and opportunity. Because of the continuous growth more space was needed and for that the best option was to expaned and carry out business on more property.

Two opposing political philosophies have always existed throughout the United States of America history: one trying to expand the power of the central government, and one trying to make it smaller or maintain the government the way it already exist. The Federalists were wealthier and carried more prestige. The Republicans were more diverse. In 1791, Hamilton and Jefferson were the ones trying to get people to vote for them to become President of the United States. In this particular election Hamilton believed that the federal government should be stronger and Jefferson argued that there was too much power in the federal government.

The Republican Party came up in the early 1790s during the reign of George Washington. In 1789, George Washington was elected unanimously as the American president and Thomas Jefferson was his Secretary of State (Bell, 1973). Jefferson and his people believed in states’ rights and a strict constitutional interpretation. They held that a strong central government presented a threat to the various independent liberties. The party followers viewed the United States of America as a combination of several sovereign entities brought together by a shared collective interest. Alexander Hamilton, who was the secretary of the national treasury, believed that a powerful central government was necessary to the peace and unity of the entire country. They argued for a comprehensive interpretation of the Constitution and viewed the Constitution need to evolve along with the nation’s growth.

After the United States gained its independence from Britain, the next step was deciding what kind of nation it should be. The founding fathers Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson, came up with two different models. Hamilton envisioned the country as an industrial and manufacturing powerhouse with a strong central government. While Thomas Jefferson’s vision favored a more agrarian based economy and a limited federal government. Although Jefferson won the 1800 presidential election, the changes that occurred in the United States during the second third of the nineteenth century marked the weakening of Jefferson’s ideals so by the end of the Civil War, the scale tipped and the US became predominantly Hamiltonian. The rapid growth of industry and commerce however, eventually led to the revival of some Jeffersonian ideals as people increasingly felt the need to slow down the acceleration of modernity.

The argument between Federalists and Anti-Federalists might seem long gone to American citizens, but still their philosophical foundations shape the teams, scope and size of the battlefield. These philosophies go back to two lone men, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. Both fought aggressively for a government based on their ideas, and both did make portions of the now-standing American government. This essay will outline the political, social and economic philosophies of both men, how their philosophies influenced the government today, and a closing opinion.

Mostly what I know about the Early Republic is they did mostly everything different from us as we do things now. And also, it had something to do with our first president George Washington. From what I have read I know that back in 1790 the Congress were having problems with the, I think, Domestic issues of finance or taxes. At least in 1775 the had a State House which many people back then had served so mostly some the more or less Independence group had did it also. I use to know that the presidents and the congress had a relationship that was only American politics.