Jefferson vs. Hamilton: Book Essay
Jefferson vs. Hamilton: Book Essay
The disagreements that occurred between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton are very important to this country; they helped shaped the United States into what it is today. From the beginning of their political careers, Jefferson and Hamilton were on the opposite sides of the spectrum, always disagreeing on key issues. They had drastically different views on the new nation. Many disagreements between these men and others eventually led to the two political parties: the Republicans and the Federalists. When George Washington was declared the first president of the United States, he appointed the two men to be among those that the president would work the closest with. He appointed Thomas Jefferson as the Secretary of State, and he appointed Alexander Hamilton to be the Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton’s first matter of business was to come up with a solution to the nations finances. His proposed legislation to establish the National Bank of the United States was the match that ignited the fire between these two very opinionated men.
Alexander Hamilton saw the new nation as one that needed many new changes. He was an avid Federalist, who helped write the Federalist Papers, in favor of creating the new constitution. Hamilton distrusted the will of the people and thought that man was naturally selfish, so he believed that a strong central government was necessary to keep order. He thought that the states rights needed to succumb to the power of a central government. To “make the United States economically strong and independent of Europe,” the federal government had to solve “its two most pressing financial problems: revenue and credit” (Davidson, p. 221). So as the Secretary of the Treasury, he began his duty to the country by drawing up his Report on the Further Provision Necessary for Establishing Public Credit and a second report soon after that announced his idea to establish a national bank. Hamilton believed that
The disagreements that occurred between Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton are very important to this country; they helped shaped the United States into what it is today. From the beginning of their political careers, Jefferson and Hamilton were on the opposite sides of the spectrum, always disagreeing on key issues. They had drastically different views on the new nation. Many disagreements between these men and others eventually led to the two political parties: the Republicans and the Federalists. When George Washington was declared the first president of the United States, he appointed the two men to be among those that the president would work the closest with. He appointed Thomas Jefferson as the Secretary of State, and he appointed Alexander Hamilton to be the Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton’s first matter of business was to come up with a solution to the nations finances. His proposed legislation to establish the National Bank of the United States was the match that ignited the fire between these two very opinionated men.
Alexander Hamilton saw the new nation as one that needed many new changes. He was an avid Federalist, who helped write the Federalist Papers, in favor of creating the new constitution. Hamilton distrusted the will of the people and thought that man was naturally selfish, so he believed that a strong central government was necessary to keep order. He thought that the states rights needed to succumb to the power of a central government. To “make the United States economically strong and independent of Europe,” the federal government had to solve “its two most pressing financial problems: revenue and credit” (Davidson, p. 221). So as the Secretary of the Treasury, he began his duty to the country by drawing up his Report on the Further Provision Necessary for Establishing Public Credit and a second report soon after that announced his idea to establish a national bank. Hamilton believed that