Anti-Administration Party

Anti-Administration "Party" (1789–1792) was the informal faction comprising the opponents of the policies of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton in the first term (1789–1792) of President George Washington. This was not an organized political party but an unorganized faction. Most had been Anti-Federalists in 1788, meaning they opposed ratification of the Constitution of the United States. However, the situation was fluid, with men moving in and out.

Although contemporaries often referred to Hamilton's opponents as "Anti-Federalists", historians prefer not to use this term, because several leaders supported ratification, including Virginia Congressman James Madison. Madison joined with former Anti-Federalists to oppose Hamilton's financial plans in 1790. After Thomas Jefferson took leadership of the opposition to Hamilton in 1792, the faction became the "Republican Party," often called by historians the Democratic-Republican Party.

History

At the Constitutional Convention in 1787 and the ratifying process is 1788 Madison was one of the two or three the most prominent advocates of a strong national government. He wrote the Federalist Papers together with Hamilton. In 1789–1790, Madison was a leader in support of the new federal government.[1]

At this time, the concept of a loyal opposition party was novel.[1] But in January 1790, Madison joined with Henry Tazewell and others to oppose Hamilton's First Report on Public Credit. The creation of this coalition marked the emergence of the Anti-Administration Party, which was almost exclusively southern at this time. Madison argued that repaying the debt rewarded speculators.[2] His proposal to repay only the original bondholders was defeated by a vote of 36 to 13.[2] Hamilton's report also provided for the assumption of state debt by the federal government. Massachusetts, Connecticut, and South Carolina owed nearly half of this debt, so other states resented assumption. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill without assumption, but the Senate included this provision. This deadlock was broken by a deal (Compromise of 1790) between Madison and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson on the one hand and Hamilton on the other which included both assumption and a decision to locate the national capital in the South, in what became the District of Columbia.[3][4]

In the second Congress (1791–1793), the Anti-Administration elements were more numerous and involved about 32 House members (out of 72). In 1791, Madison and Hamilton again clashed when the latter proposed the creation of a national bank. Southern planters were opposed, but urban merchants supported the idea. Madison said the Bank was unconstitutional, but Hamilton successfully argued that the Necessary and Proper Clause of the constitution allowed for it.[5]

The French Revolutionary Wars, which began in April 1792, hardened the differences between the factions. The Pro-Administration Party supported the British while the Anti-Administration Party supported the French. Jefferson joined the party in 1792, and it contested the election that year under the name "Republican." The Republican Party, together with Hamilton's Federalist Party, are referred to as the First Party System.

References

  1. ^ a b Wood, Gordon S. (2009). Empire of liberty : a history of the early Republic, 1789-1815. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 140. ISBN 9780195039146. 
  2. ^ a b Wood, p. 141.
  3. ^ Wood, p. 141–142.
  4. ^ Chernow, Ron (2010). Washington: A Life. New York: The Penguin Press. p. 631. ISBN 978-1-59420-266-7. LCCN 2010-19154. 
  5. ^ Wood, p. 145.

Further reading