The Alien And Sedition Acts

George Washington was unanimously elected as the first President of United States of America in 1789 and again in 1792. No political parties existed in America during that time. Founding Fathers including George Washington believed that political parties would be harmful for the young America. They envisioned the politics in the young nation to be cooperative and not competitive. By the end of the eighteenth century, however, political parties had become a reality in the form of Federalist Party and Democratic - Republican Party. The two parties differed in a variety of ways but they especially differed in terms of their foreign relations with European powers. Federalists led by Alexander Hamilton wanted to create a stable economy built on trade favoring the wealthy business owners. Democratic Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson, on the other hand, had the interests of poor farmers, and immigrants in their mind. Federalists supported the British against the radical French whereas Republicans preferred to maintain friendly relations with the democratic French against the British. Earlier, in 1794, President George Washington had angered the French leaders when he signed the Jay Treaty with Great Britain in 1794 settling the differences between the two countries. John Adams, a federalist, was elected the second President of the United States of America in 1797. After taking over as President, he sent American envoys to

On July 14, 1798, John Adams, putting them into effect, signed The Alien and Sedition

Signed into law by President John Adams in 1798, the Alien and Sedition Acts consisted of four laws passed by the Federalist-controlled Congress as America prepared for war with France. These acts increased the residency requirement for American citizenship from five to fourteen years, authorized the president to imprison or deport aliens considered "dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States" and restricted speech critical of the government. These laws were designed to silence and weaken the Democratic-Republican Party. Negative reaction to the Alien and Sedition Acts helped contribute to the Democratic-Republican victory in the 1800 elections. Congress repealed the Naturalization Act in 1802, while the other acts were allowed to expire.

In the late 1910’s Congress passed the Espionage and Sedition Acts of 1917 and 1918 (ESA). Historian Howard Zinn sees the ESA as a malicious attempt by the U.S. government to “imprison Americans who spoke or wrote out against the war.” Zinn’s argument dismisses the idea that the ESA was a necessary step to ensure the integrity of a nation at war, as he believes that America’s entrance into WWI was motivated by a selfish desire for monetary gain and economic expansion. Zinn asserts that the U.S. government allowed American investors to “tie American finance closely to the interest of a British victory.” While Zinn’s ideas are well-argued and supported, they tell only one side of a complicated story. James West Davidson, however, tells another. He argues that at the time of the ESA’s passing, the United States had been pushed by German action into the first global conflict in its history. He describes the German U-boat attacks that were devastating the Atlantic, and the reports of “cracking morale” that were trickling in from the front lines, and asserts that the ESA was passed by a desperate government in order to combat protestors who attempted to sway public opinion against the war. Davidson never explicitly describes the ESA as good or bad, but he provides some valuable context that Zinn ignores. The ESA was not, as Zinn alleges, a heartless assault on the American coordinated “with all the power of the federal government and the money of big business behind it,” nor was it a shining example of individual freedoms. It was a complicated document with complicated implications, and consideration of only Zinn’s or Davidson’s writings eliminates the intricacies that were inherent in the ESA, and the circumstances that lead to its

The 1780’s and 1790’s were a time of growing contentions in America, and were capped off with the creation of the Alien and Sedition acts. The Alien and Sedition acts included four laws that made it extremely difficult to be an immigrant in the United States. These laws allowed the president to deport any immigrant he deemed dangerous or suspicious, allowed the government to remove immigrants in time of war and also required that any immigrant live in the US for fourteen years before they could be given citizenship. The fourth act infringed on the right to free speech, which is a fundamental right given by the constitution, by prohibiting any conspiracy or “scandalous and malicious” writings against the United States government. The four acts were the government’s response to the growing issues in the America. These issues included the division of the government into political parties, the American people’s growing distrust of foreign nations, and the distrust between people within America.

The Alien and Sedition Acts were laws passed by the 5th Congress in 1798 in preparation for an undeclared naval war with France, later known to be the Quasi-War. The Acts passed, signed by then-President John Adams, aimed to limit the power of the opposition Democratic-Republican Party, who was at the time supportive of the French and to create a barrier against aliens and immigrants who were feared to sympathize with the French. Brought upon to restrict the public activities of political radicals who had sympathized with the French Revolution, as well as those who challenged Adams’ Federalist policies, The Alien and Sedition Acts were created not for the intention to promote national security but rather to uphold the image of power created by the Federalists in hopes of suppressing the views of opposing parties.

The Alien Act allowed the president to remove anyone he thought to be dangerous or harmful to the country’s well being from the country. The Sedition Act banned all criticizing of the United States government in any way shape or form. Both acts violate the constitution in multiple ways. The Alien and Sedition Acts were created to filter and clean out the “bad” people from the young and growing country, and to keep the government clean. Innocent people were being removed from the country because he or she was thought to be dangerous. Only one side of the government was being seen. There was no contrast or comparison in our government of the people. When people started to realize that these acts were unconstitutional they began to rebel to protect themselves.

Federalists passed the Alien and Sedition Acts to soothe fears about the French and Irish who might push for another revolution and to ease the

In 1798, President John Adams passed the Alien and Sedition Acts containing three parts: the Alien, Sedition, and Naturalization Acts. The Alien Act allowed the president to deport any immigrant that he found dangerous to the nation; the Sedition Act made it a crime to criticize the government; and the Naturalization Act lengthened the citizenship process. These acts were repealed by 1802 due to their negative impacts and influences on society. The Alien and Sedition Acts left an impact on the nation through the deprivation of American rights—such as the first amendment rights of freedom of speech and freedom of press— leading to protests that rocked the nation. These policies created a gap between the government and the people, destroying

With the United States and France on the brink of war, the mostly Federalist congress passed four laws known as the Alien and Sedition Acts. With these acts the years of residency increased from five to fourteen years. The acts also gave the authority to deport and imprison aliens if the war broke out. The Sedition Act alone made it illegal to print, speak and publish any negative things about the government. Many feel these laws were used against an imposing party the Democratic- Republicans, whom many new citizens favored in office.

The Kentucky resolutions were drafted sometime between July and October of 1798 by Thomas Jefferson. The resolutions were passed later that year by the Kentucky legislature in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798. There are about nine different resolutions, which primarily describe how Jefferson argued the fact that individual states have the right to assess the validity of the laws passed by the general government.

The fourth and concluding act was the, Sedition Act. This act was allowing them to put people in prison or by punishing the convicted person of releasing any so called, anti-government works. Which seems pretty reasonable to

A country born of laws, rights and citizenship with the idea of a free people to govern over themselves, was the original intent of the American experience. However, America did not inherit traditional bonds of a national identity, so it had to rely on a few cultural foundations that became critical in deciding who belonged in the American experience. The pillars seemed to be a common language of English, a religion based on a broad view of Christianity, and the notion of a traditional family. As more people were included politically, more people were excluded culturally if they did not conform to some version of those three expected characteristics. This weeks reading demonstrates how Constitutional guarantees take a backseat in the wake

George Hay was a Virginia legislator who was known for his opposition to the Sedition Act of 1798. The Sedition Act was originally part of the Alien and Sedition Acts, which were passed at the anticipation of war between our nation and the French. These acts, particularly the Alien act were specifically aimed at the French immigrants who were waiting for their citizenships. Americans did not really care about those laws except for the Sedition Act. A lot of Republicans including George Hay opposed to this law, because they thought that it was violating the rights of the Americans to have freedom of speech and of press. So, as a way of expressing his own opinion, George Hay wrote an

The Sedition Act of 1918, responsible for outlawing the use of corrupt language toward the United States government, its flag, and armed forces; recently has undergone a series of “peaceful protests.” Although the beginning action may be foreseen as peaceful opposition the incidents that follow adversely impact the nation and our free society.