-The 1800 Revolution
-Jefferson's policies
-The Twelfth Amendment
-Marbury v. Madison
-The First Barbary War
-The Louisiana Purchase
-The Lewis and Clark Expedition

[SLIDE 1]

Washington, you'll recall, served two terms before stepping down. Adams had served one term and was now standing for reelection. His opponents argued Adams was an aristocrat who was expanding the powers of the federal government, thereby robbing ordinary citizens of their freedom. Jefferson would protect their individual liberties, they argued. With slander and name-calling becoming an election tactic, the election of 1800 is viewed as probably the nastiest in American history. The election was so thoroughly acrimonious that the longstanding friendship of Jefferson and Adams suffered a breach lasting for the next twenty years.

[SLIDE 2]

Charles C. Pinckney was the brother of Thomas Pinckney and had been minister to France during the XYZ Affair. Hamilton by now was through with Adams following his renewed peace initiative with France. Again Hamilton tried to manipulate the outcome of the election, again supporting a Pinckney, this time Charles Pinckney, in preference to Adams. Hamilton wrote a scathing 54-page letter against Adams, which became public and backfired, damaging his efforts to have Pinckney elected. Jefferson and Burr each received 73 votes, resulting in a tie. At that point, the terms of the Constitution came into play, and it was up to the House of Representatives to decide the outcome of the election. This was rather odd, since the House was still dominated by Federalists, meaning the Federalists would have to choose which Democratic-Republican would be president. Hamilton again steps in, persuading several Federalists to change their votes to favor Jefferson. Although Jefferson had the wrong principles, thought Hamilton, Burr had none at all as far as he was concerned. 

[SLIDE 3]

The election ushered in a period of Democratic-Republican political dominance and is therefore sometimes referred to as the 1800 Revolution. In this election, something was indeed proved. Despite the contentiousness of the election and the struggle to reach a final decision, power was transferred from one party to another without incident. In spite of all the rancor and maneuvering, it was a peaceful transition. 

[SLIDE 4]

A change to the Constitution would be made, however, to ensure that a tie could never happen again. This was the Twelfth Amendment, which was ratified with joint Federalist and Democratic-Republican support.

[SLIDE 5]

Before they office, however, the Federalists wanted to make sure that Republicans would not undermine the Constitution once in office. The best way to guarantee the safety of their point of view was through the judiciary; therefore, the Federalist lame ducks in Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1801. This act expanded the federal court system, which Adams then filled with like-minded judges, particularly John Marshall, Adams' secretary of state, who was now made Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

[SLIDE 6]

On March 4, 1801, Jefferson became the third president of the United States. Adams, at the end of his term, had moved into the drafty, unfinished White House, but Jefferson was the first president to assume office in the new national capital of Washington City. Jefferson's tone was conciliatory, encouraging civil discourse between the parties and honest, not hostile, disagreement. The Alien Friends and Sedition Acts passed by the Federalists were allowed to expire, but the Alien Enemies Act remained and was in fact utilized during W.W.II. The W.W.II imprisonment of Japanese Americans, however, was not done as part of the Alien Enemies Act but as the result of an executive order by President Franklin Roosevelt. A federal investigation undertaken during the presidency of Jimmy Carter found there was little basis for the action and that it was the result of racism. President Reagan signed an act apologizing to Japanese Americans and authorizing reparations to the families of those incarcerated.

Returning to Jefferson, he held to his ideal of an agrarian economy, believing that America's political decisions could be entrusted to the reason of men who owned and worked their own land. America, with its plentiful land, would be Europe's bread basket, and in return, Europe could manufacture the goods that Americans wanted to buy. Jefferson did his best to reverse Hamilton's policies and to reject mercantilist ideas of supporting the nation-state through protectionist tariffs, trade restrictions, and price control. His Congress immediately went after the Federalist court reforms by enacting the Judiciary Act of 1802.

[SLIDE 7]

On his way out the door, Adams had stacked the court, appointing a large number of Federalist judges. His appointments were approved by Congress on Adams' last full day in office. Adams' secretary of state, John Marshall, hadn't had time to deliver all the official appointment letters; four were left on his desk undelivered. Jefferson ordered his new secretary of state, James Madison, to withhold the letters. One appointee who didn't get his official commission was William Marbury, who had been appointed a justice of the peace, a low-level judge, in the new federal District of Columbia. Marbury, with the backing of the Federalists, filed suit in the Supreme Court to force his appointment. The opinion written by Chief Justice John Marshall, the one who had failed to deliver the commissions, stated that Madison's refusal to deliver the commissions was illegal. In normal circumstances the court would order the commissions be delivered; however Marshall found that the Judiciary Act of 1789 had expanded the Supreme Court's role beyond what the Constitution established. He then struck down part of the law, which meant that the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to order Madison to deliver the commissions. Although the Court didn't order the executive branch in this instance, and Marbury lost his case, Marshall had won a more important point. By sacrificing Marbury, he had strengthened the authority of the Supreme Court and its independence of the Executive branch.

[SLIDE 8]

Marbury established the Supreme Court's power to review the constitutionality of American laws at both the federal and state level. It also established that the power of judicial review covers actions by the executive branch: the President and his cabinet members. It is considered a binding precedent in American law.

[SLIDE 9]

Jefferson believed in a balanced budget, whereas Hamilton had believed it worthwhile to accumulate debt to accomplish objectives. Jefferson's treasury secretary, Albert Gallatin, implemented partisan changes under the guise of fiscal responsibility, eliminating Federalists from public roles wherever possible, and downsizing the federal government by shifting responsibility to the states, in accordance with Jefferson's beliefs. By eliminating internal taxes, Republicans made customs duties and the sale of western lands the only sources of federal income.

[SLIDE 10]

Jefferson's emphasis on sea trade was imperiled by the Barbary corsairs who controlled access to the Mediterranean sea and trade with Portugal, Spain, and other countries. Since its independence, America's approach to sea trade in the region had been to bribe the Barbary countries of North Africa to allow passage. In fact, that was the usual approach: it was typical for countries having treaties with the Barbary states to include the payment of annual protection money in the treaty. America was paying 1/5 of the federal budget for this protection. Since Jefferson's vision was for America's economy to be based on sea trade, and Gallatin wanted to reduce the national debt, Jefferson urgently felt the need to address this restriction on trade. He felt his best and most honorable option was war. Jefferson, as commander-in-chief, sent naval vessels to engage the corsairs, and the First Barbary War was underway. 

[SLIDE 11]

Meanwhile, there was a crisis in merchant shipping closer to home. In accordance with the Treaty of San Lorenzo, Spain had allowed free shipping on the Mississippi through to the outlet in New Orleans. Now, France, under Napoleon, had traded some land in southern Europe to Spain in exchange for Spain's holdings in North America. America had no such shipping agreement with France. In anticipation of the exchange, Spain suspended free trade in New Orleans. Jefferson, despite his strong connections with France, prepared to establish closer relations with England. Meanwhile, he tried to buy at least some of the territory centered on New Orleans from France. Napoleon, having by now lost interest in restoring France's empire in North America and the Caribbean, decides instead to raise funds for his wars in Europe. 

[SLIDE 12]

Although the purchase price went far beyond the amount Jefferson had authorized, the American leaders seized the opportunity to obtain land they had coveted for westward expansion and to secure the Mississippi as a trade route. The Louisiana Territory extended far beyond today's state of Louisiana. It encompassed a vast swath of the Midwest, extending up to Canada and across to the Oregon Territory. The purchase raised serious questions about its constitutionality. Members of both parties pointed out that the framers had made no provision for extending the boundaries of the United States. Jefferson was stretching federal authority by making the purchase. He argued that sometimes one needed to follow not the Constitution, but rather what he called "laws of necessity”: the purchase would help secure the country's liberties and was necessary for its security. The treaty was ratified by Congress in 1803.

[SLIDE 13]

The well-known Lewis and Clark Expedition that set out to explore the Louisiana Territory actually began before the American purchase of the territory. When Jefferson first heard of the impending land transfer between Spain and France, he instructed army Captain Meriwether Lewis, his personal secretary, to organize a spy mission under the pretext of scientific exploration. He enlisted the help of Lieutenant William Lewis, along with a special unit of volunteers from the army called the "Corps of Discovery.” Along the upper Missouri, they came in contact with the Mandans and overwintered with them. The Mandans were a settled agricultural people whose villages were hubs for trading, food, and shelter among peoples within the region. Among the Mandans, they learn a great deal but also come in contact with a French trader and his Shoshone wife, who speak several languages and have a good deal of information to share about what lies west. With their help, the expedition makes contact with the Shoshone, who help them cross the Rockies. From that point, with the help of friendly tribal networks, they are able to make their way to the Pacific Ocean.