The Elections of 1796 and 1800 – Adams and Jefferson
EQ: What must a new nation accomplish to become stable?
EQ: How did the New Republic respond to the challenges of the times?
The Election of 1796
In the presidential election of 1796, candidates sought office for the first time as members of a party. To prepare for the election, the Federalists and the Republicans held meetings called caucuses. At the caucuses members of Congress and other leaders chose their party’s candidates for office.
The Federalists nominated Vice President John Adams as their candidate for president and Charles Pinckney for Vice President. The Republicans (Democratic-Republicans) put forth former secretary of state Jefferson for President and Aaron Burr for Vice President. Adams and Jefferson, who had been good friends, became rivals. The Federalists expected to carry New England. The Republicans’ strength lay in the South, which would give most of it votes to Jefferson.
In the end Adams received 71 electoral votes, winning the election. Jefferson finished second with 68 votes. Under the provisions of the Constitution at that time, the person with the second-highest number of electoral votes became Vice President. Jefferson therefore became the new Vice President. The administration that took office on March 4, 1797, had a Federalist president and a Republican Vice President.
The XYZ Affair
In 1778, France lent support to the Patriots after the Battle of Saratoga and helped win the American Revolution. Soon after our revolution, France had one of her own. The French expected some support from the U.S. since they had helped us. However, our new country was unable to return the favor during the French Revolution. This caused some tension. Matters were made worse when the Federalist Party gained control of the U.S. government. The Federalists were pro-British and anti-French. Federalist Alexander Hamilton sought to strengthen ties with Britain by sending John Jay to negotiate remaining problems between the two countries following the American Revolution, especially the issue of the British seizing American ships involved in trade with France. President Washington signed Jay’s Treaty in hopes of encouraging trade and goodwill with Britain. However, many Americans felt the U.S. had to give too much and gained too little. Jay’s Treaty was unpopular at home, but also unpopular with the French who viewed the U.S. as breaking an alliance with France. As a result, France began attacking U.S. ships involved in trade with Great Britain. This was an issue that was unresolvedin Washington’s presidency and, thus, it was John Adams first foreign policy crisis. Adams sent John Marshall, Elbridge Gerry, and Charles Cotesworth Pinckney on a peace mission to France. French foreign minister Talleyrand refused to receive them officially. Instead, three men whose identities were concealed in official documents met the U.S. representatives. They were referred to simply as “X, Y, and Z”. The agents proposed that the Americans pay Talleyrand about $250,000, and then the French would discuss the matter. This perceived bribe enraged Americans. “Millions for defense; not one cent for tribute!” became a popular slogan in America. Americans were willing to spend any amount of money to defend our nation, but not one cent for bribes.
Subversion
The XYZ Affair made the American government sensitive to subversion. Subversion is activity designed to undermine or overthrow the government. In 1800, our country was young and vulnerable. There was a sense of heightened awareness of individuals, groups, or governments who might be trying to harm or take advantage of our infant country. There was a belief among some that we needed to protect our new government at all costs. The Federalist government under our second president, John Adams, passed The Alien and Sedition Acts to protect our government from potentially dangerous individuals and subversive activity.
The Alien and Sedition Acts
In 1789, the Federalists passed four laws designed to protect our government from subversive elements:
•The Naturalization Act made it more difficult for foreigners to become U.S. citizens. This act increased the residency requirement for citizenship from 5 years to 14 years.
•The Alien Act and Alien Enemies Act gave the president power to imprison or deport aliens suspected of activities posing a threat to the national government.
•Sedition means to stir up rebellion against the government. The Sedition Act allowed for the punishment of those who criticized the government either verbally or in writing.
Many felt these laws were not designed to protect the government, but designed to repress the Republican Party and keep the Federalist Party strong. Foreigners supported Republicans, so the Naturalization Act postponed voting privileges of foreigners from 5 years to 14 years. Many newspaper editors were Republican, so they were denied their First Amendment freedoms when they were detained or fined for criticizing Federalist policies.
The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions
The Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions were proposals in Congress that would limit the power of the national government and increase the power of state governments. The Kentucky Resolution, written by Thomas Jefferson, stated that the national government had no right to exercise any powers not specifically given to it in the Constitution. Any power not listed was automatically a power of the states. The Virginia Resolution proposed that states should be able to nullify (cancel) federal laws they opposed. Neither of these resolutions passed in Congress. However, the idea of states’ rights is addressed for the first time. States’ rights is the power of states to limit the power of the federal government.