Monday, October 15, 2007

US political parties in 1790s

Although the development of political parties during the 1790s was originally due to Alexander Hamilton's financial and economic regulations, it was greatly increased with the introductory of foreign affairs with France and Britain. The emergence of political parties began with Treasury Secretary Hamilton's financial proposals about national and state debts and duties and taxes. His debt plan , however winning the favor of states with large debts, created resentment from states with small debts. Furthering resentment, his customs duties and excise tax, putting tariffs on foreign trade and tax on some domestic items including whiskey, respectively, led to the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794. The rebels, who deeply defied the taxes and assaulted revenue officers, regarded the excise tax as a burden to an economic necessity of their's. Finally, the issue over a national bank formed a strong border between Jefferson, who believed what the Constitution did not specifically authorize was reserved to each individual state to decide, and Hamilton, who viewed that what the Constitution did not forbid it permitted. All of these led to a separation, divided by Fedarlists and Jeffersonians, within the country on domestic affairs which would, more or less, give way to differing views on foreign affairs.
The French Revolution further stimulated the development of political parties. Federalists feared what was happening in the Reign of Terror in France, while Jeffersonians felt that, however terrible it was, it was a necessary price to pay. Even more furthering the split was the Neutrality Proclamtion from the once-allied France. Many Jeffersonians were outraged by this act, especially with Washington's inability in consulting Congress. However, most Federalists felt this position was necessary. Adding more to the nation's political gap was John Jay's Treaty with Britain, which essentially gave Britain the right to make future maritime seizures and impressments and bound the United States to pay debts from pre-Revolutionary times. Jeffersonians reacted extremely negatively to this believing this treaty to be a straightfoward surrender to England and an unequal mix of conditions involving Federalists being repremanded and Jeffersonian South forced to repay debts.

No comments: