APUSH Chapter 10

Citizen Genet

An impetuous, thirty-year-old representative of the French Republic with unrestrained zeal, he undertook to fit out privateers and otherwise take advantage of the existing Franco-American alliance. He was soon swept away by his enthusiastic reception by the Jeffersonian Republicans. He foolishly came to believe that the Neutrality Proclamation did not reflect the true wishes of the American people, and he consequently embarked upon un-neutral activity not authorized by the French alliance - including the recruitment of armies to invade Spanish Florida and Louisiana, as well as British Canada. The president demanded his withdrawal and he was replaced by a less impulsive emissary.

Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions

As a result of the Alien and Sedition Laws, Jefferson and Madison wrote a series of resolutions passed in Kentucky (1798-99) and Virginia (1799). Invoking the logic of the compact theory, Kentucky resolutions concluded that the federal regime had exceeded its constitutional powers and that with regard to the Alien and Sedition Acts, "nullification" was the "rightful remedy."

Washington's two-term tradition

Exhausted after the diplomatic and partisan battles of his second term, President Washington decided to retire. His choice contributed powerfully to establishing a two-term tradition for American presidents.

XYZ Affair

France was upset with Jay's Treaty and it started capturing American merchant ships. President Adams sent three men to France to negotiate in 1797. Hoping the meet Talleyrand, the French foreign minister, Adams's envoys were secretly approached by 3 go-betweens, later referred to as X, Y, and Z. The French spokesmen demanded an un-neutral loan of 32 million florins and a bribe of $250,000 just to talk to Talleyrand. Angered by the intolerable terms, America began preparations for war: the Navy Department was created; the three-ship navy was expanded; the United States Marine Corps was reestablished.

Washington's Farewell Address

Given in 1796 in newspapers, Washington strongly advised the avoidance of "permanent alliances" like the still-vexatious Franco-American Treaty of 1778. He left office in 1797.

The elastic clause

Hamilton favored a broad interpretation of the Constitution. He and his followers thus evolved the theory of "loose construction" by invoking the "elastic clause" of the Constitution, which would be a precedent for enormous federal powers.

The Whiskey Tax

Hamilton secured from Congress in 1791 an excise tax on a few domestic items, notably whisky. The new levy of seven cents a gallon borne chiefly by the distillers who lived in the backcountry, where the wretched roads forced the farmer to reduce bulky bushels of grain to horseback proportions. Whiskey flowed so freely on the frontier in the form of distilled liquor that it was used for money.

Hamilton's protective tariff

Hamilton wanted customs duties, derived from a tariff, to get money to pay off the debt. The first tariff law imposed a low tariff of about 8 percent on the value of dutiable imports and was passed by Congress in 1789.

Jay's Treaty with Britain

In a last attempt to avoid war, President Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay to London in 1794 to negotiate. Opposed by Democratic-Republicans, Jay hammered out a treaty, Jay's Treaty, in which the British promised to evacuate the chain of posts on U.S. soil and pay for damages for the seizures of American ships. Britain stopped short of pledging anything about future maritime seizures or about supplying arms to Indians. The treaty also called for the U.S. to continue to pay the debts owed to British merchants on pre-Revolutionary War accounts.

The Neutrality Proclamation of 1793

Issued by Washington shortly after the outbreak of war between Britain and France, this epochal document not only proclaimed the government's official neutrality in the widening conflict but sternly warned American citizens to be impartial toward both armed camps. It was a major prop of the spreading isolation tradition and was controversial.

The Whiskey Rebellion

It flared up in southwestern Pennsylvania in 1794 by people who regarded the tax on a frivolous luxury as a burden on an economic necessity and medium of exchange. It was cheaper to transport crops distilled into alcohol than bales of grain. President Washington got an army of 13000 to put down the rebellion. Only three rebels were killed but it showed that the government commanded a new respect.

Funding at par

It means that the federal government would pay off its debt at face value, plus accumulated interest (total of more than $54 million) along with the states' debts. This was suggested by Alexander Hamilton, Treasury Secretary, to the Congress to get the favor of the wealthier groups whose money would support the federal regime and cause the prosperity to trickle down to the masses.

Nullification

It meant a refusal to accept something, as in the Kentucky resolution, which concluded that the federal regime had exceeded its constitutional powers and that with regard to the Alien and Sedition Acts, "nullification" was the "rightful remedy."

Pinckney's Treaty with Spain

Jay's Treaty caused Spain, which feared an Anglo-American alliance, to strike a deal with the U.S. In Pinckney's Treaty of 1795 with Spain, Spain granted the Americans free navigation of the Mississippi River and the large disputed territory north of Florida.

Ratification of the Constitution

Many states had ratified the federal Constitution on the understanding that it would soon be amended to included guarantees of individual rights, or a bill of rights.

The Bank of the United States

Proposed by Hamilton, it was based on the Bank of England. It would be a powerful private institution with the government as the major stockholder. It would also be a place for the federal Treasury to deposit its surplus monies. The bank would stimulate business by remaining in circulation and print urgently needed paper money, thus providing a sound and stable national currency.

Compact theory

Stressed by Madison and Jefferson and popular among English political philosophers in the 17th and 18th centuries, this concept meant that the thirteen sovereign states, in creating the federal government, had entered into a "compact," or contract, regarding its jurisdiction. The national government was consequently the agent or creation of the states. Since water can rise no higher that its source, the individual states were the final judges of whether their agent had broken the "compact" by overstepping the authority originally granted.

Adding the Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights was drafted by James Madison, who felt that a new convention to propose the amendments might unravel the narrow federalist victory in the ratification struggle. He then sent it through Congress and it was adopted by the necessary number in 1791. These first ten amendments to the Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights and safeguard some of the most precious American principles.

The Judiciary Act of 1789

The act organized the Supreme Court, with a chief justice and five associates, as well as federal district and circuit courts, and established the office of the attorney general.

Impact of the French Revolution on the United States

The earlier battles of the French Revolution had not hurt America directly, but now Britain was sucked into the contagious conflict. The conflagration spread to the New World, affecting the expanding young American Republic.

Sedition Act

The last measure of the Federalist clampdown, it was a direct slap at two priceless freedoms (speech and press). This law provided that anyone who impeded the policies of the government or falsely defamed its officials would be liable to a heavy fine and imprisonment. The Federalists believed that it was justified.

Implied powers

These were basic functions and laws that Congress felt were "necessary and proper" to carry out the powers vested in the various government agencies.

Alien Laws

They raised the residence requirements for aliens who desired to become citizens from a tolerable five years to an intolerable fourteen. The president was empowered to deport dangerous foreigners in time of peace and to deport or imprison them in time of hostilities. Although defensible as a war measure, this was an arbitrary grant of executive power contrary to American tradition and to the spirit of the Constitution, although they were never enforced.