Page 209 - American Stories, A History of the United States

In the Kentucky Resolutions, Jefferson described the federal union as a compact.
7.1 The states transferred certain explicit powers to the national government, but they
retained full authority over all matters the Constitution did not specifically mention.
Jefferson rejected Hamilton’s broad interpretation of the “general welfare” clause.
7.2 When Madison drafted the Virginia Resolutions in December, he took a more tem-
perate stand. Madison urged the states to defend the rights of the American people, but
he resisted the notion that a single state legislature could or should overthrow federal law.

7.3 The Virginia and Kentucky Resolutions were not intended as statements of abstract
principles and most certainly not as a justification for southern secession. They were
pure political party propaganda. Jefferson and Madison reminded American voters
Quick Check during a period of severe domestic tension that the Republicans offered an alternative
7.4 How did the Kentucky and Virginia to Federalist rule. No other state legislatures passed the Resolutions. Even in Virginia,

Resolutions propose to protect where the Republicans enjoyed broad support, important figures such as John Marshall
American freedoms? and George Washington criticized the states’ rights argument.
7.5
Adams’s Finest Hour

In February 1799, President Adams belatedly declared his independence from the
Hamiltonian wing of the Federalist Party. Throughout the confrontation with France,
Adams had shown little enthusiasm for war. Following the XYZ debacle, he began to
receive reports that Talleyrand had changed his tune. The French foreign minister told
Elbridge Gerry and other Americans that the bribery episode had been an unfortunate
misunderstanding. If the United States sent new representatives, he would negotiate
in good faith. The High Federalists ridiculed this report. But Adams threw his wan-
ing prestige behind peace. In February, he asked the Senate to confirm William Vans
Murray as U.S. representative to France.
When the new negotiators—Oliver Ellsworth and William Davie joined Murray—
arrived in France in November 1799, they discovered that yet another group had come
to power there. This government, headed by Napoleon Bonaparte, cooperated in draw-
ing up an agreement known as the Convention of Mortefontaine. The French refused to
Quick Check compensate the Americans for vessels taken during the Quasi-War, but they declared
Was the Convention of the treaties of 1778 null and void. Moreover, the convention removed annoying French
Mortefontaine a victory for restrictions on U.S. commerce. Not only had Adams avoided war, he had created an
American diplomacy?
atmosphere of mutual trust that paved the way for the purchase of the Louisiana Territory.

The Peaceful Revolution: The Election of 1800
On the eve of the election of 1800, the Federalists were fatally divided. Adams enjoyed
wide popularity among the rank and file, especially in New England, but articulate
party leaders such as Hamilton vowed to punish the president for betraying their mili-
tant policies. The former secretary of the treasury attempted to rig the voting in the
electoral college, so that the party’s vice presidential candidate, Charles Cotesworth
Pinckney, would receive more ballots than Adams and America would be saved from
“the fangs of Jefferson.” As in 1796, the conspiracy backfired. The Republicans gained
73 votes while the Federalists trailed with 65.
However, the election was not resolved in the electoral college. When the ballots
were counted, Jefferson and his running mate, Aaron Burr, had tied. This accident—a
Republican elector should have thrown away his second vote—sent the selection of the
next president to the House of Representatives, a lame-duck body that the Federalist
party still controlled. (see Table 7.2).
As the House began its work on February 27, 1801, excitement ran high. Each state
delegation cast a single vote, with nine votes needed for election. On the first ballot, Jef-
ferson received the support of eight states, Burr six, and two states divided evenly. People
predicted a quick victory for Jefferson, but after dozens of ballots, the House had still not
selected a president. The drama dragged on for six days. To add to the confusion, Burr
refused to withdraw. Contemporaries thought his ambition had overcome his good sense.

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