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//(March 16, 1751-June 28, 1836)// //Political Party: Democratic-Republican// //Terms in Office: March 1809- March 1817 (two terms)// //Vice Presidents: George Clinton (1809-1812, died in office), Elbridge Gerry (1812-184, died in office)// American Identity: Outside of James Madison’s presidency, two things happened that showed what America was, both during the War of 1812. One was Andrew Jackson’s war-ending victory in the south. Even though, the war was already technically over, this battle was huge in identifying what it meant to be an American. General Andrew Jackson, lacking a sizeable regular army, put together an army of everyone and anyone he could find. These included American Regulars, militiamen, frontiersmen, Creoles, and even pirates. Together, this ragtag group of “soldiers” was able to defeat the superior British force in New Orleans, and pretty much end any legitimate British threat to America. All of these different groups of people coming together, under no obligation to risk their lives and fight, for the good of the country is exactly what it means to be an American. This improbable, courageous victory saved the war from becoming a disaster for America and James Madison.
 * __ James Madison __**

Another thing that helped define what it means to be an American is the defense of Fort McHenry and Francis Scott Key’s authorship of “The Star Spangled Banner”. The courageous, persistent defense of the fort guarding Baltimore embodies what the American spirit is. Once again facing immense odds against them, the soldiers defending Fort McHenry realized how important it was, and fought valiantly. This inspired Key to write what would become the national anthem, proving that the events he witnessed really were what identified America. Although written about one specific event, “The Star Spangled Banner” really can be applied to what it means to be an American in general. Through times of turmoil and danger, Americans can be counted on to do what is right and make sacrifices for their country in order to defend it. These two events are exactly what the “American identity” is.

James Madison, the fourth president of the United States, deserves a B- for his time in office. Madison’s success outside of the presidency greatly outshines his performance during it. After authoring the Constitution and Bill of Rights, his presidency was somewhat of a letdown. He refused to budge on his views, even if it was clear to others that his view on that particular subject would harm the country. Madison handled the situation leading up to the War of 1812 rather horribly, and the war almost proved to be disastrous for the country, even though the war actually earned him popularity with the people. With that said however, Madison led America through chaotic times and came out on top, establishing America as a worldwide military force, and salvaged what good he could from the War of 1812. Madison saved face at the last moment with the national bank. He also defended the Constitution pretty much to the letter throughout his presidency, establishing it as a functioning supreme law of the land. Overall, James Madison handled the situations he faced during his time and office reasonably well, and deserves a B-.

Right from his inauguration address, James Madison made it clear that he wanted to maintain and enhance the period of prosperity that the country was currently enjoying. He stated that he wanted to stay neutral from other nations and generally keep out of the affairs of foreign countries. Another thing Madison made clear he wanted to accomplish was to improve farming, manufacturing and the nationwide economy. The last non-generic, “improve the nation” kind of goal Madison set for himself was to uphold and defend the Constitution. This goal was most clearly met of all of them. Madison, having written the Constitution himself, was abnormally partial to seeing its purpose carried out. In almost everything he did, he stayed true to his interpretation of the Constitution. While writing the Constitution, he was a federalist, however, once he went into politics, he joined the opposite side, the Jefferson-led Democratic-Republicans. This meant he had more of a “strict interpretation” of the Constitution; federal government could not do things that were not specifically in the Constitution. Madison’s behaviors and tendencies, like putting off renewing the charter for the national bank, reflected those beliefs. The War of 1812 put short term road blocks in the way of his other goals. Not only did he break his vow to keep America out of foreign affairs, but it temporarily threatened to break apart the nation and end the period of prosperity it had enjoyed. It actually had the opposite effect though. The War of 1812 provided manufacturing opportunities for many Americans, and gave the opportunity for the Industrial Revolution to take hold in America, which put America’s economy in an even better place than before. Trade would improve greatly because of the Industrial Revolution, as the factories would need raw materials from other areas, and the goods produced could be traded in return. Even though entering the war in the first place was probably a bad idea, despite popular opinion of the people, it made a way for Madison’s other goals for the country to be accomplished. Overall, Madison met his goals, aside from staying neutral, although not in a way he nor anyone probably would have planned. America would continue to prosper, manufacturing and the economy would improve, and he stayed true to the Constitution.

James Madison’s relationship with Congress throughout his presidency was never very stable. Political parties were still in their infancy, and conflicts between Federalists and Democratic-Republicans cause problems for Madison. Congress was pro-Madison, Democratic-Republican, throughout both of his terms, but the number of Federalists in office increased during his time in office. More than just the party divisions, though, was Madison’s absolute belief and interpretation of the Constitution. Being a strict constructionist, he believed that if a power of federal government was not made clear in the Constitution, they could not do it. The establishment of the Bank of the United States, for example, went against this way of thinking, and James Madison allowed its charter to run out in 1811, and didn’t agree to renew its charter until 1816, even though Congress passed a bill to renew it in 1814. Madison only vetoed seven bills during his presidency, and was the first president to utilize the “pocket veto”, which is allowing a bill to just die without signing or vetoing it and bypassing Congress’ ability to overturn an executive veto, proving that he didn’t necessarily value or care about the opinions of Congress. Another big part of Madison’s relationship with Congress was the War of 1812. Americans had voted in a “war hawk” Congress in response to Britain’s Royal Navy prevention of American trade with France and the impressment of American seamen. Madison, wanting to defend France and go to war with Britain, asked this Congress for a declaration of war, and they produced just that. This common cause between Madison and Congress improved relations with them, but going to war against Britain would prove costly, though not without indirect gains, for America.

The most positive action Madison took during his presidency was actually just saving face from what was nearly disastrous for the country. The Bank of the United States’ federal charter ran out in 1811, and Madison, with his strict constructionist view, thought it was unconstitutional for the federal government to establish such a bank. However, unchanging public opinion, and the costliness of the War of 1812, forced Madison to accept the bank for what it was, and renew its charter. The “Second War for Independence” proved costly for America, and the Secretary of the Treasury, Gallatin, was having a difficult time funding the war without the Bank. He voiced his concern, but Madison was deadest on not having a national bank, as he thought it went against the Constitution. When James Madison finally realized the economy would continue to suffer without the Bank of the United States, he agreed to renew the charter in 1817. After the American government had agreed to go with Alexander Hamilton’s plan to save the American economy after the Revolutionary War, its economy was almost completely reliant on the Bank of the United States. Without it to regulate currency and the economic structure of the government and country, it was nearly impossible to pay for the War of 1812. However, at the tail end of his second term, Madison did decide to finally authorize the Second Bank of the United States. This decision allowed for the United States to once again begin to pay off its debts it had accumulated from the costly War of 1812. James Madison finally relented on his belief that establishing a national bank was against the Constitution and realized it needed to be done for the good of the people. The Bank stabilized a somewhat floundering economy once again, at least until a better system could be found to replace it. America’s trade and manufacturing was thus taken advantage of and used to the benefit of the government. Even though it took Madison a full two terms to realize it needed to be done, the reestablishment of the Bank of the United States was one of the shining moments, although probably not recognized as such at the time, of James Madison’s presidency.

Contrarily, the single worst part of Madison’s presidency was his failure to avoid war with Britain. Britain and France were in another of the seemingly endless string of wars between the two, and the effects began to impact America. The British were using their Royal Navy to prevent American trade with France, and also pressing American sailors, usually from merchant ships, into service on the warships. Additionally, they were arming Natives along the northwestern border of America and urging them to attack the settlers, even though Britain had given up rights to that land decades ago. All of this had the public calling for war. Somewhat uncharacteristically, Madison was swept up in this, and called for Congress to declare war against Britain, heedless of the fact that America was unfit to fight, and also lacked the funds to do so. America still had a relatively weak army and navy, although both would fight valiantly in the war. Madison had requested to Congress for preparations for a war, like enlarging the navy and producing more arms for troops, but no concerted effort was really made. America was severely unprepared for war, and took a beating for the most part. Luckily for him, Madison would be saved from destruction at the hands of the British by the deeds of his army and navy. The American Navy would enjoy unexpected success during this war, but, on land, America would initially not fare so well. The capital was taken and burned by the British, but were fortunately driven out before further damage could be done. Had the British maintained a hold on the capital, America may have ceased to exist, a threat that had to have been present on Madison’s mind before declaring war. Andrew Jackson was able to lead a ragtag group of men in the South and soundly defeat the British, saving America from any more trouble. Regardless of the outcome, the fact that James Madison would agree to, and even push for, war with such a powerful world force as the British put America’s future in jeopardy. Although there would be unintended gains, such as the inception of the Industrial Revolution in America, and also the writing of our national anthem, entering the War of 1812 was risky at best, and James Madison’s failure to keep peace and maintain neutrality was an incredibly huge letdown during an otherwise fairly successful presidency.

The biggest impact James Madison and his administration had on the future was the way they handled the War of 1812. Madison, at the urging of the American public, rushed a decision to declare war, even though the nation was clearly unprepared. This established that the president had enough influence to get Congress to declare war, but also proved that future presidents should be wary of public opinion. Just because the majority of people want something, doesn’t mean it’s right. Madison was too easily swept up in the “war fever”, and rashly declared war. In the future, presidents and their administrations would need to be more careful of the public, not just in war, but in all governmental matters. Madison made a costly mistake in doing what the public wanted just for popularity, and was only saved from all out disaster by good fortune and the valiant efforts of other individuals. Unfortunately, this would be his lasting impact on the future of his position.

Overall, James Madison’s presidency was fairly successful. Despite the War of 1812, the country came out of his two terms for the better. The economy had improved, the population was growing, and America’s victory in the war had proved them to be a legitimate world power, even if they didn’t have the traditional level of force other powers had. The renewal of the Bank of the United States saved the economy for a time, allowing for a transition from old ways to new. Madison was in many ways a transitional president. The war laid the base for the industrial revolution in America, and the “Era of Good Feelings”, where political parties were much less prevalent, followed his presidency. Although the War of 1812 marred his time in office, he came out of it ok, and deserves a slightly above average grade, B-, for his efforts.

"American President: James Madison." //Miller Center//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. . "James Madison." //The White House//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. . "James Madison." //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. . Madison, James. "Inaugural Addresses of the Presidents of the United States." //The American Presidency Project//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. . "Party Division." //U.S. Senate//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. . "Vetoes." //U.S. Senate//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. .