The Federalist Party:
By the time Alexander Hamilton died on the dueling grounds of Weehawken, New Jersey, the power of the Federalist Party was in terminal decline. Federalism was born in 1787, when Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison wrote 85 essays collectively known as the Federalist papers. These eloquent political documents encouraged Americans to adopt the newly-written Constitution and its stronger central government.
Largely influenced by the ideas of Alexander Hamilton, the Federalists succeeded in convincing the Washington administration to assume national and state debts, pass tax laws, and create a central bank. These moves undoubtedly saved the fledgling democracy from poverty and even destruction. In foreign policy, Federalists generally favored England over France.
Anti-Federalists such as Thomas Jefferson feared that a concentration of central authority might lead to a loss of individual and states rights. They resented Federalist monetary policies, which they believed gave advantages to the upper class. In foreign policy, the Republicans leaned toward France, which had supported the American cause during the Revolution.
Jefferson and his colleagues formed the Republican Party in the early 1790s. By 1795, the Federalists had become a party in name as well.
After John Adams, their candidate, was elected president in 1796, the Federalists began to decline. The Federalists' suppression of free speech under the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the assumption of closer relations with Britain instead of France, inflamed Jeffersonian Republicans. In 1801 Jefferson, with Vice President Aaron Burr at his side, assumed the presidency.
The Federalists feared and hated Jefferson, but partly due to infighting, they were never able to organize successful opposition. A last great hope -- that the New England states would secede and form a Federalist nation -- collapsed when Jefferson won a landslide reelection in 1804, thanks to the Louisiana Purchase. Alexander Hamilton was left with little power -- and with no choice but to meet Aaron Burr on the dueling ground in hope of reviving his political career. But Hamilton was doomed, and so was his party. The Federalists would never again rise to power.
The Republican Party:
Known informally as the Jeffersonian Republicans, this group of politicians organized in opposition to the policies of Federalists such as Alexander Hamilton, who favored a strong central government.
Led by Thomas Jefferson, whom they helped elect to the presidency for two terms [1801-1809], the Republicans believed in individual freedoms and the rights of states. They feared that the concentration of federal power under George Washington and John Adams represented a dangerous threat to liberty. In foreign policy, the Republicans favored France, which had supported the Colonies during the Revolution, over Great Britain.
These ideas represented a departure from the policies of the Federalists under the administrations of Washington and Adams. The Federalists had established monetary policies that gave more power to the federal government and had rejected ties with France in favor of closer links to Britain.
During the undeclared war with France at the end of the 1790s, the Federalists clamped down on those who spoke in favor of the France under the Alien and Sedition Acts. The Republicans vigorously opposed this action, regarding it as a dangerous intrusion on the rights of free speech.
Using these issues, as well as the power swung his way by his vice president, Aaron Burr, Republican leader Thomas Jefferson won election to the presidency in 1800. This Republican party, which would hold power until 1825, is the direct ancestor of today's Democratic Party.
Southerners: agarian based economy, jeffersonian/jacksonian/conservative/republicans, belived in slaves, used them for labor, there were rich planters and big plantations and there were also small illiterate farmers. Had much bias and problems with the native americans, they were sectionalists
Northerners: all about biz, industries, factories, mercantile economy, federalists, bigger population, urban, cities
Westerners: fur trappers who were white who worked for fur companies. More isolated, got along with the Indians, creation of roads when more people moved
....
1.The New York Legislature had passed a law giving a monopoly on steamship travel in New York state to a group of investors, including Robert Fulton, the inventor of the steamship Clermont. Among the people who had permission to do business under this monopoly was Aaron Ogden.
Thomas Gibbons, another steamship
trader, wanted to use the New York waterways for his business, too. He had been given federal permission to do so. He was denied access to these waterways by the State of New York, which cited its law as enforcement. Gibbons sued Ogden, and the Supreme Court agreed to decide the case.
The majority opinion, written by Marshall, said that the U.S. Constitution had a commerce clause that allowed the federal government to regulate commerce, in this case trade, wherever it might be, including
within the borders of a state. Previously, it was thought that the federal government had power over only interstate commerce. But Marshall's opinion said that the commerce clause applied here, too. Thus, the Supreme Court extended the definition of interstate commerce and cemented the power of the federal government over the states when laws conflicted. marshall court said that Federal law TRUMPS state law- Gib V.Og
2.New laws can't violate CONTRACTS-Dart
3. Maryland was taxing a branch of the united states bank so it would go in financial catastrophe and fail. Marshall court said State's can't tax federal institutions-Maryland case
4. Georgia wanted to move indian tribes out. But marshall court said that the Indian tribes are sovereign nations and only federal government can do stuff not states-Georgia
A feud between party leaders Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton, resulting from Hamilton's allowing the US House to choose Jefferson over Burr in the Presidential election of 1800, which led to a duel between the men. Hamilton was killed in the duel, and for Burr became a fugitive. This significantly weakened the Federalist Party. The Federalists were able to control the Judicial Branch of government, and therefore empower the Judicial Branch to promote a Federalist agenda through the courts.
The Federalist Party did not support the idea of a strong democracy. That is not to say that it wanted a monarchy or other
sort of autocracy, but it is true that the Federalists were more comfortable with the idea of power being in the hands of an elite group. The Federalists supported the Constitution because the Constitution did not allow the people to vote directly for the Senate, the President, or the Supreme Court. They felt that this would keep some distance between the people and the government and prevent the government from acting on the whims of the mass populace. The trouble with this idea is that it went
against the spirit of the time. The common people of America did not believe that they were incapable of ruling themselves. Instead, they wanted more democracy. This made the Federalists less popular and helped lead to their demise.
The end of the Federalist Party also came about because of the War of 1812. In this war, the US fought Great Britain. The Federalists opposed this war for two main reasons. First, they approved of the British form of government because it was set up to reduce the
power wielded by ordinary people. They admired this system and supported Britain in its wars against France. Second, the Federalists were mainly centered in New England, an area with an economy that was dominated by trade with England. They did not want a war that disrupted their economic system, particularly since they admired the system of the country against whom the war was being fought. The Federalists met in the Hartford Convention to express their opposition to the war. They even
discussed the idea of secession. When the war ended in something of a victory for the US, the Federalists appeared to be unpatriotic and defeatist. This helped bring about the end of their party.Thus, this party died off because of its lack of enthusiasm for democracy and because of its opposition to the War of 1812.
popular election of presidential electors in most states
Adoption of the national nominating convention for the selection of presidential candidates
Removal by most states of property and taxation requirements for voting
note:
While it is true that the change in state voting requirements was the most revolutionary change to American elections, the two party system was nothing new. Even before George Washington retired from public...Other new changes were the number of states involved. This slowed down the results even more because results had to cross the Appalachians and be verified by state election boards in
far-flung counties.Although there were still two dominant parties, political alliances had been redrawn. Politics were divided between social class rather than socio-economic status. The Federalist party claimed industrialists, bankers and northerners, while the Democratic Republicans took southerners, farmers and plantation owners. By 1824, the Democratic party took westerners, farmers, the poor and most southerners. The New Democratic-Republicans took the north, wealthy, industrialists and the
bankers.