Keely+G.

John Adams

October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826

Political Party: Federalist

Terms in Office - March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801 (One Term)

Vice President – Thomas Jefferson (Democratic Republican Party)

Thematic Preface:  The election of George Washington was unanimous. The new and unstable country needed a leader, and as a result Washington ran unopposed to become the first president of the United States. After George Washington’s retirement, the people of the United States had a decision to make that would affect the American thought process and American identity as a whole. The presidential election of 1796 marked the first election between two distinct political parties. The Democratic Republican Party believed in more power for the states and a strict enforcement of the Constitution to keep the federal government in check. The Federalists were on the other side of the debate and believed a strong central government was needed. With radical beliefs on both sides, this election forced people to review what issues were important to them and which candidate would best support that belief. This led to the development of their identity as Americans.  The candidates of the 1796 election were Thomas Jefferson for the Democratic Republicans and John Adams for the Federalists. John Adams won the election and became the second president of the United States. This decision would continue to have effects on American identity. Thomas Jefferson truly demonstrated the beliefs of the Democratic Republicans. John Adams was considered a moderate Federalist. While he clearly sided with the Federalists and often allowed his partisanship to cloud his vision, he still did not buy into every belief held by the majority in his party. This was important because having a president that epitomized the beliefs of his party could have divided the country further. John Adams made his own decisions, even if it meant opposing his party. Thus, he forced the people he led to also formulate their own ideas about what was best for the country. This was demonstrated by Adams’ actions in foreign policy with France. He ignored the belief of the majority to declare war and used his own means to create peace. This established a precedent for the American people to follow. Regardless of partisanship it is important to take the action that will have the most positive impact on the American people.  John Adams also encouraged the development of the American identity when he was siding with the majority in his party. The unconstitutional Alien and Sedition Acts threatened the people’s freedoms, and forced them to reconsider their partisanship. Many decided that they did not want to allow any threats to their freedoms to continue and switched their allegiance to Thomas Jefferson.  The division between these two political parties created a very tense time in American history. However, if there was one positive outcome from this it was the effect on the American thought process. Whether it was influenced by a good decision or a bad one, John Adams’ presidency and the partisanship disputes surrounding it had a profound effect on American identity.

Thesis: It is undeniable that John Adams was a very influential man during the American Revolution. His political ideas earned him the nickname “The Atlas of American Independence,” from Richard Stockton, a fellow signer of the Declaration of Independence. As a founding father, Adams is often regarded as an American hero. As the second president of the United States, however, Adams was definitely less than perfect. Following George Washington’s presidency (in which John Adams served as vice president), Adams had very large shoes to fill. After entering office, Adams’ political ideas were put to the test. The results of some were more successful than others. For example, Adams was incredibly successful in handling one of the left over ordeals from George Washington’s administration; America’s relationship with France. Despite this, he did a very poor job in handling the development of two separate political parties; the Federalists and the Democratic Republicans. He allowed his desire to defeat his Republican opponent to stand in his way of effectively running the country. This was evidenced by the passing of the controversial Alien and Sedition Acts. Adding to his achievements, John Adams was also responsible for appointing John Marshall for a lifetime term as Chief Justice, a decision that would affect the development of the judicial branch of government. Because Adams had both successes and failures, his term as president earns him a B.

Goals: As his inaugural address states, Adams’ main goal was to support and uphold the Constitution. He elaborates on his admiration of the American government, celebrating the fact that America is an independent country run by free people. He vows in his address to support all that the Constitution guaranteed. The passing of the Alien and Sedition Acts undermined all other efforts made by Adams to achieve this goal. These laws made it illegal to write anything critical of the government, which was a direct threat to the people’s first amendment right to freedom of the press. It also granted powers to the federal government that were not outlined in the Constitution. These acts clearly show that Adams did not uphold his promise to support the Constitution and therefore failed in attaining this goal. As a Federalist, Adams also sought to strengthen the power of the central government. The aforementioned Alien and Sedition Acts took this goal to an extreme. Therefore, he succeeded in this goal. Adams also took measures to attain this goal when he granted the federal government further power regarding the armed forces. Because of these reasons, Adams succeeded in achieving this goal. In fact, he achieved this goal so well that it actually undermined his efforts at achieving other goal of upholding the Constitution. The other of Adams’ main goals addressed in his inaugural speech was of more immediate concern to the United States. He aimed to achieve peace between France and the United States. John Adams was far more successful at achieving this goal than any other. By taking peaceful actions despite the protests of the people, Adams avoided a war that seemed inevitable. He reaffirmed America’s neutrality in the European dispute and established a peaceful trading agreement between the U.S. and France. This unexpected success at foreign policy was a major achievement for John Adams.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Congress: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> The recent development of the Federalist Party and the Democratic Republican Party created tensions in both houses of Congress. Adams’s party of the Federalists held the vast majority in both houses of Congress. Therefore, the Federalists virtually controlled Congress. In fact, John Adams didn’t veto a single law. However, the president of the Senate was the Democratic Republican Vice President, Thomas Jefferson. Further complicating issues, Federalists and Democratic Republicans disagreed on nearly every issue. The Federalists favored a strong central government while the Republicans believed more power should be granted to the states. Therefore, Adams faced extreme opposition to many of his legislative decisions. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The differing opinions in Congress made it particularly difficult to agree on America’s position in the war between Great Britain and France. Though the U.S. had already proclaimed its neutrality, France had been attacking American ships in a dispute known as the Quasi-War. The Democratic Republicans believed Britain was still a major threat to America and therefore, America should be siding with the French. Conversely, the Federalists took Britain’s side. Furthermore, there were disagreements within the Federalist Party as some Federalists preferred Alexander Hamilton to John Adams. While Adams’ followers believed peaceful measures should be taken to end French attacks, Hamilton’s followers believed the United States should go further and declare war against the French. Extreme opinions on both sides resulted in increased difficulty for Adams’ attempts to end the Quasi-War. He did sign into effect two laws that expanded the Navy and the Marine Corps in the case that armed resistance may become necessary. They did not, and Adams effectively created peace between France and the U.S. in a civil manner that contradicted the beliefs of others in Congress. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Disputes between the Federalists and the Republicans became so bad during Adams’ presidency that the Republicans began looking for ways to overthrow the dominating Federalists in Congress. To calm these issues, the Federalists drafted the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Democratic Republicans saw these acts as completely unconstitutional. In response, Thomas Jefferson, leader of the Democratic Republican opposition, anonymously drafted the Kentucky Resolution. This resolution, adopted by the Kentucky legislature, declared that any powers not given to the federal government should be given to the states. James Madison drafted a similar resolution, known as the Virginia Resolution. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The Alien and Sedition Acts passed by the Federalists and the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions passed by the Democratic Republicans were directed towards minimizing the opposite parties’ influence on legislature. They also show how difficult it was for these feuding parties to pass effective legislature during Adams’ presidency. This was further evidenced by the disagreements in Congress over how to handle the Quasi-War.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Positive Outcome: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Adams’ crowning achievement as president was by far his success in dealing with the dispute between the United States and France. The history between these two countries was long and regularly changing. The French were a very important ally to the Americans during the Revolutionary War, a favor for which the U.S was still indebted to France. During the Washington Administration, the U.S. proclaimed neutrality in the war between Britain and France. However, in the eyes of the French, the Jay Treaty, creating peaceful trade between the U.S. and Great Britain, violated this proclamation. The relationship with France was made worse when Adams was elected president. He and his fellow Federalists (who had also supported the Washington Administration) took the side of the British in the war, while the Democratic Republicans led by Thomas Jefferson took the side of the French. Obviously, the French hoped for Jefferson to win the election, and were therefore upset when Adams entered office. Ignoring Washington’s proclamation, French privateers took to looting and attacking American merchant ships. These attacks were known as the Quasi-War, or the Undeclared War between France and the United States. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Upon gaining office, Adams was immediately faced with the possibility of a full scale war with France. He ignored the popular opinion for a declaration of war, and instead took much more peaceful actions to end the Quasi-War. He sent three men to France to negotiate the issues, but the French Minister refused to see them unless they paid a $250,000 bribe. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The pro-French Democratic Republicans believed Adams had formulated this affair as an excuse to declare war on France. In response to this accusation, Adams released the official documents to the public. This altercation became known as the XYZ affair because the names of the French agents who had offered the bribe were replaced with the letters X, Y, and Z. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The pro-French sentiment of the Democratic Republicans was extinguished with the release of these papers. However, the documents also increased the popular call for war from Hamilton’s Federalists. Adams stood his ground on peaceful action and arranged for another mission to be sent to France. There they were accepted and the neutrality agreement was once again put in place. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Against all odds, Adams not only ended the Quasi-War, but he also established a long standing peace agreement between the United States and France. Thus, France became America’s most important trading partner following the agreement.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Negative Outcome: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The worst decision John Adams made as president was his passing of the Alien and Sedition Acts. John Adams, though he did not help to draft them, did sign them into law. Not only were these acts made with the worst of intentions, they were also blatantly unconstitutional. These Acts consisted of four separate laws. The first, the Naturalization Act, was aimed at increasing the difficulty of the Naturalization process. The following two laws, the Alien Act and the Alien Enemies Act, granted the federal government the power to deport aliens deemed “dangerous” and to imprison those from countries warring with the United States. The last of these acts, The Sedition Act, made it illegal to publish writing that was critical of the United States government. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Adams’ administration claimed that these acts were intended to strengthen the United States against France. However, the hidden purpose was to further hinder the Democratic Republicans. French immigrants and other non-English immigrants tended to side with the Democratic Republicans. Afraid of Republican opposition, John Adams signed these laws into effect to insure that the strength of the Federalists would continue. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> These laws were clearly unconstitutional. The federal government was never granted the power to deport aliens. Furthermore, the Sedition Act directly violated the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Though these laws were not strongly enforced, ten anti-Federalists were found guilty and were punished. Among these was Benjamin Bache, author of the Democratic Republican newspaper the //Aurora//. Matthew Lyon, a representative for Vermont, was arrested for writing a letter accusing Adams of having an “unbounded thirst for ridiculous pomp, foolish adulation, and self avarice.” Adams never deported any aliens, but some still feared he would and left voluntarily. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> Despite the measures Adams took to secure a Federalist win in the next election, the acts actually worked against him. Many were outraged at the unconstitutional laws and voted for Thomas Jefferson in the election of 1801. In a last attempt to spite his opponent, Adams spent his last days as president appointing Federalist judges to the seats established by the Judiciary Act of 1801. These appointments were known as the “Midnight Appointments.” <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;"> The Alien and Sedition Acts left a large stain of John Adams’ presidency. John Adams truly wanted to lead America to further success. In addition, his foreign policy with France was a huge achievement. However, the Alien and Sedition Acts as well as the subsequent Midnight Appointments painted Adams as a stubborn man who was determined and willing to do anything to win, regardless of what was best for the people.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Influential Decision: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">The most influential decision that John Adams made as president occurred during his final two months as president. Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth, his health declining, resigned from his position. Adams took this opportunity to appoint a Federalist for a lifetime term as Chief Justice. This position went to John Marshall. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">This decision would become far more important than Adams probably expected. Marshall did so much more than just serve as the last Federalist influence on government. In fact, he is regarded as the greatest Chief Justice in American history. During his 34 year term, he established the judicial branch’s power as an important part of the system of checks and balances. His judicial decisions set a precedent for how judicial law should be practiced in the future. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">One of the first actions John Marshall took to make the practice of judicial law more effective was to have the Court write only one opinion representing the majority. Having the Court speak with one unified voice was essential in making decisions within a newly established government. This allowed him to write opinions creating the foundation of Constitutional Law. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Marshall was also responsible for writing the court opinion on the most influential case in American History. In Marbury v. Madison, the court expressed that it had the power to review acts passed by Congress and overrule them if they were found unconstitutional. This precedent of judicial review became the most important power of the court and would be exercised by all later generations. This power also checks that of Congress. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Marshall also expressed his Federalists views as the Chief Justice. In Mulloch v. Maryland, the court strengthened the power of the central government by giving it the implied power to create a Federal Bank, made constitutional by the elastic clause. This case demonstrated the power of the Supreme Court to check the power of the states. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">It is difficult to tell whether Adams was aware of the impact the appointment of John Marshall would have of the future. John Marshall is responsible for making the Supreme Court the power that it is today. Regardless of his intention, none of John Marshall’s decisions would have been possible if it were not for John Adams. Therefore, his appointment of John Marshall should be considered an extreme success because of its long standing effect on American government.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Conclusion: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px;">Overall, America was better off after the end of Adams’ presidency. In the early days of his term, French ships were attacking Americans at sea. By the end of his term, France was one of America’s most trusted trading partners. These relations had been accomplished through peaceful means. In addition, Adams had appointed John Marshall to Supreme Court Justice, and his influence on the judicial system would extend beyond Adams’ presidency. Adams made one major mistake as president. He ignored his predecessor’s warning against partisanship and spent too much time opposing the Republicans. Though the Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional, they did not have any long term repercussions. They were poorly enforced, and expired during Thomas Jefferson’s first term, and those who were punished by the acts were pardoned. Because the long term positive effects of Adams’ presidency outweigh the short term negative effects, he deserves a B for his term as president.

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