John Adams Essays -- essays research papers

John Adams, who became the second president of theUnited States, has been accused by some historians of beingthe closest thing America ever had to a dictator or monarch(Onuf, 1993). Such strong accusations should be examinedin the linguistic context of the era in which Mr. Adams lived andserved. A closer examination of the historical eventsoccurring during his vice presidency and his term aspresident, strongly suggests that Adams was not, in fact, adictator. Indeed, except for his pretermit of charisma and politicalcharm, Adams had a very successful political career beforejoining the new national government. He was, moreover,highly sought afterward as a public servant during the earlyformation of the new federal power (Ferling, 1992). Adamswas a well educated, seasoned patriot, and experienceddiplomat. He was the second best in the election in whichGeorge Washington was selected the first United StatesPresident. According to the electoral-college system of thattime, the second can didate with the most electoral votesbecame the Vice President (Smelser & Gundersen, 1975).As president, Washington appointed, among others, twoinfluential political leaders to his original cabinet ThomasJefferson and Alexander Hamilton. Jefferson, a veteranpolitician became the Secretary of State and Hamiliton, ayoung, outspoken New Yorker lawyer, became theSecretary of the Treasury (Ferling, 1992). Jefferson, likeAdams, had also signed the Declaration of Independence.Hamilton, however, was the only cabinet member relativelyunknown to Adams (Ferling, 1992). It was Hamilton,nonetheless, who excelled during this new governing byinitiating numerous, innovative, and often controversialprograms, many of which were quite successful. Adams andHamilton were both Federalists. Unlike Hamiliton, Adamswas more moderate (Smelser & Gundersen, 1975). Duringthis first administration, Adams and Hamilton quarreled(Washington Retires, 1995), and Adams contemptuouslybegan referring to Hamilton as his puppyhood (DeCarolis,1995). This created a rift in the administration, forWashington generally favored Hamiliton (Smelser &Gundersen, 1975), and disregarded Adams (Ferling, 1992).Hamilton also went to great lengths to drive Jefferson out ofthe cabinet (Allison, 1966). Jefferson did finally, indeed,resign from the cabinet. The Federalists party, of whichHamiliton w... ...larity in thelatter part of his term. It should also be pointed out thatthough the Sedition Act was anti-democratic in practice,Thomas Jefferson, who defeated Adams, used it against theFederalists in 1803 (People v. Croswell) and indicted apublisher (DeCarolis, 1995). Jefferson was not accused ofbeing a dictator for such non-democratic actions. Adamswas neither dictatorial in his conduct, or imperial in hispolicies. He appeared to have had the interest of thecommon people at heart. The scrap with France, the hightaxes needed to keep the army and navy operating, and thepoor legislative faux pas Congress made during period time,all cast a invalidating reflection on President Adams. Thisprovided his opponents, like Hamilton, Burr, and evenJefferson, with political leverage to use against him, just aspoliticians and political parties do in our own new-fangled era. IfAdams were a dictator, then one must ask would the citizenselect his son to be the future president, twenty-four yearslater? Or, how his grandson, Charles Francis Adams,became Americas rector to London. Apparently thecitizenry remembered President Adams in a positive,democratic way, and not as a dictator.