Chapter 5: The Federalist Era

Lesson 1: The First President

President Washington

• On April 6, 1789, George Washington was elected the first president of the new nation.

• Precedents, or traditions, that he set continue to shape the presidency of the United States.

• Congress created three departments in the executive branch– The State Department– The Treasury Department– The War Department

• Congress also created the office of attorney general and the office of postmaster general.

• These people together became known as the cabinet.

• The president was given the power to dismiss cabinet officials without Senate approval.

• Washington appointed Thomas Jefferson as secretary of state, Alexander Hamilton as secretary of the treasury, and Henry Knox as secretary of war.

• He also appointed Edmund Randolph as attorney general.

Alexander HamiltonSecretary of Treasury

Federalist

Thomas JeffersonSecretary of State

Democratic-Republican

Henry KnoxSecretary of War

Federalist

Edmund RandolphAttorney General

Federalist

• The Judiciary Act of 1789 established the Supreme Court, the district courts, and the courts of appeals.

• John Jay was appointed to lead the Supreme Court as the first chief justice.

John Jay (Federalist)First Supreme Court Chief

Justice

• In December 1791, 10 amendments were added to the Constitution.

• These amendments protected individual rights and became known as the Bill of Rights.

• The Tenth Amendment protects people from a too-powerful national government by giving more power to the states.

Question Break #1

• What is a precedent?• List three precedents set by George

Washington.• What was/is the job of the cabinet?

Strengthening the Economy

• The new nation faced a growing national debt, or the amount of money owed by government to lenders.

• To fight the Revolutionary War, the government had borrowed money by issuing bonds - paper notes promising to repay the money in a certain length of time.

• While waiting for repayment, many citizens sold their bonds at cheap prices to speculators - people who take risks with their money to make a larger profit.

• Alexander Hamilton proposed that the national government pay off American citizens who had supported the country in the war by paying the bonds’ original value.

• Congress and many citizens, particularly in the Southern states, opposed the idea.

• To win over the Southern states, Hamilton agreed to locate the nation’s capital in the South.

• A special district was created between Virginia and Maryland for the nation’s capital, which became Washington, D.C.

• A national bank was created despite some opposition from those who believed that it would be unconstitutional.

• Hamilton proposed a tariff, or tax on imports, to encourage people to buy American products.

• Congress passed low tariffs to raise money but did not pass protective tariffs.

• Congress approved a variety of national taxes for operating expenses of the national government, an idea proposed by Hamilton.

•Appointed heads to each of the departments created by Congress

•Nominated John Jay as first chief justice

•Created three executive departments

•Established the Supreme Court and lower federal courts

•Added ten amendments to the Constitution

Question Break #2

• How did Hamilton think that federal payment of state debts would influence the states?

• What were the two main reasons that Madison and Jefferson opposed the establishment of a national bank?

• Though most Americans lived by farming, Hamilton thought that development of __________ would make the economy stronger.