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Jeffersonian America
In the late 1790s, two political parties had formed: the Federalists and the Democratic Republicans (also called Jeffersonian Republicans). The Federalist Party was led by Alexander Hamilton and John Adams. As the name implies, it supported a strong national government. Additionally, it called for high tariffs, or taxes on imports, that would protect American manufacturing from foreign competition. Federalists tended to be popular in the North because there was more manufacturing going on there. In the Napoleonic Wars (between Great Britain and France), the Federalists wanted the United States to support the British because of the shared culture and ideas. The Federalist Party dominated American politics until the election of 1800.
Conversely, the Democratic Republicans were led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. This party, popular in the South, supported states’ rights and opposed tariffs. Since there was very little manufacturing in the South, Southerners didn’t care whether their goods were manufactured in the United States or overseas—they just wanted to buy the least expensive goods available. Democratic Republicans also wanted to repay France for its support during the Revolutionary War, so they encouraged U.S. involvement on the French side in the Napoleonic Wars.
The election of 1800 resulted in a shift of the majority party control of the government from the Federalists to Democratic Republicans. Because this shift in power from one ruling party to another took place without any violence or bloodshed, it is sometimes called the Revolution of 1800 and is seen as evidence of the successful function of the U.S. system. After 1800, Democratic-Republican leaders supported policies that helped farmers and reduced tariffs. During Thomas Jefferson’s first term as president, he reduced government spending, cut the national debt by half, and reduced the size of the military because he believed that a strong standing army is a potential tool for tyranny in the hands of a powerful central government.
Changes to the Supreme Court
The transition from Federalist Party to Democratic-Republican control resulted in serious debates regarding the power of the government. Before relinquishing executive and legislative powers they had lost in the election, the Federalists passed the Judiciary Act of 1801. This legislation added new positions to the federal judiciary and filled the positions with Federalist partisans. Jefferson and his supporters sought to block these last-minute midnight appointments. The Supreme Court case Marbury v. Madison was the result of one of these judges—Marbury, suing Madison, who had refused to deliver Marbury’s appointment. In response, Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that the Judiciary Act of 1801 was unconstitutional. The ruling established the principle of judicial review. This is the idea that, when a law is the subject of litigation, the Supreme Court has the right to strike down a law that is deemed unconstitutional. Judicial review greatly expanded the role and powers of the Supreme Court in the United States.
The Growth of Sectionalism
Politics divided Americans philosophically, but regional differences also came to dominate political discussion. Sectionalism—the belief that each region or section of the country had its own interests—created political divisions based primarily on economic concerns. The industrializing Northeast wanted high tariffs to protect their growing industries from European competition. Northern states had also begun to abolish slavery, with New Jersey being the last Northern state to put an end to it in 1846. Conversely, the South and West opposed tariffs because they wanted to import the least expensive goods available, no matter where they came from. They also disliked other nations’ imposing tariffs on American goods as a means of retaliating.
The economic arguments between the different sections of the nation were often focused on two key issues: whether the federal government should support Henry Clay’s American System and whether the institution of slavery should expand into new territories. The American System was a plan for the nation’s economy, which provided for a series of internal improvements, such as the creation of roads, canals, and other infrastructure. The American System also called for a strong national bank to ensure stability for the currency and high tariffs to protect industry. These internal improvements tended to appeal to the North, while the South and West saw little benefit. However, the North and West tended to be antislavery, while the South was very protective of the institution. In short, each region had its own unique interests. As the country expanded, so did these differences. The addition of new territories resulted in the first of many compromises over the expansion of slavery. The Missouri Compromise of 1820 forbade the spread of slavery into any new territories north of Missouri.
