E Pluribus Plures: A Timeline

Intro

I've been lurking on here for the last few months, and I've decided to try making a timeline. In this, Martha Jefferson's death is delayed for a few years, meaning that Thomas Jefferson doesn't become the ambassador to France because of family obligations. Because of this, Jefferson is able to attend the Constitutional Convention.

Excerpt from an article in The Richmond Advocate, January 27, 2015

We may finally have the answer to the centuries-old question of what President Thomas Jefferson's wife, Martha, suffered from in the years before her death in 1793. While reading through records at Jefferson's plantation, Monticello, historian Jeremiah Stillwell found mentions of constant thirst, weakness, blurry vision, and, in her last few months, constant pain and numbness in her abdomen. While he hasn't been able to discuss these findings with a doctor yet, Stillwell speculates that Martha Jefferson may have had diabetes.

Excerpt from The Philadelphia Conference, by Jan Koenig

By 1787, it was clear that the Articles of Confederation had failed. The national government was bankrupt due to the refusal of the states to give it money, the country had suffered large amounts of violence by dissidents, most notable during Shay’s Rebellion in 1786, and the states were unwilling to allow Congress to regulate trade with other countries. Even the strongest supporters of states rights knew that the Confederation could not go on.

In May, delegates from each state met in Philadelphia to revise the Articles. Early on it was obvious that that would not happen, and that the Articles would be replaced in their entirety. When the delegates to the Philadelphia Convention realised that, they began to divide themselves into two distinct groups. The Federalist faction, led by George Washington and James Madison, joined by most Northern delegates, supported a strong, centralised government. The Anti-Federalist faction, led by Thomas Jefferson and supported by most Southern delegates, supported a weak central government and strong states rights.

The Federalists championed the Virginia Plan, with a strong central government whose bicameral legislature would have a lower house elected by proportional representation based on the states' populations, and an upper house elected by the lower house from candidates nominated by the states. The federal executive would be elected by the legislature for a single term. The Anti-Federalists, on the other hand, proposed a government similar to the one established by the Articles of Confederation, called the New Jersey Plan. Congress would be unicameral, with one delegation elected by each state, and would elect an executive yearly.

Another proposed plan that should be noted is Alexander Hamilton's. While Hamilton is best known as the first Prime Minister of New England, his role in the Constitution Convention should not be understated. He proposed a system of government modelled off of that of the United Kingdom, with an executive elected for life with an absolute veto, a directly elected lower house, and an upper house elected by electors.

The Convention finally decided on a modified New Jersey plan, in large part due to Jefferson's success in marshalling both Southern and small state delegates. Rather than the proposed unicameral legislature, a lower house would be appointed by the people of each state proportionally to population and an upper house would be appointed equally by each state. The federal government would only have power over defence, trade, foreign relations, and solving disputes between the states, while all other powers would be exercised by the states.

Description of the Government of the USA

  • Each state appoints a recallable delegation of 2-7 delegates to the Senate. The delegates of each state vote as one bloc, and each state gets one vote. Delegates serve until they're recalled by their state.
  • Every male property-owning citizen who is at least 21 years old elects a representative to the House of Representatives. Representatives are apportioned to states according to the number of free people plus three fifths of slaves. Representatives can serve unlimited terms of two years.
  • Congress elects the Executive Council every four years in a joint session of both houses. The Executive Council is made up of Secretaries and headed by the President of the Executive Council, who is elected from the Executive Council by the other Secretaries. The President is just responsible for leading the Executive Council, and doesn't have any special powers and is still the Secretary of a government department.
  • The Executive Council nominates Tribunes to the Supreme Tribunal to be approved by the Senate. The Supreme Tribunal is the highest court and has the power of judicial review.
  • Congress has sole power over the military, foreign trade, international relations, interstate commerce, and resolving disputes between the states. All other powers are held by the states.
  • The Constitution can be amended by a two thirds vote of each House of Congress and the ratification of three fourths of the states, or by a constitution convention called by two thirds of the states.

The 1788 Election

The 1788 election in the USA happened without parties, so every Congressman was nonpartisan, although they were informally divided into the pro-administration and anti-administration factions.

Secretary of State: Thomas Jefferson
Secretary of the Treasury: Alexander Hamilton
Secretary of War and President of the Executive Council: George Washington
Secretary of Justice: Edmund Randolph
 
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History of the United States, 1788-1804

The first Executive Council was faced with the difficulty of establishing a new government after the failure of the Confederation. While Congress had been meeting in Philadelphia, there was no set capital. Furthermore, many of the states were heavily in debt. Over the first few months, Congress, led by James Madison and John Adams, passed a number of bills, including patent law, naturalization and immigration law, and laws concerning relations with the Native American tribes. When Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton proposed a number of tariffs to strengthen American industry, the rapid lawmaking of Congress came to an abrupt halt. The tariffs were heavily opposed by the Southern planters, while they were supported by the Northern industrialists. After a long period of debate, the two groups reached a compromise: the tariffs would be passed if the capital was moved to the South. Thus, the District of Columbia was created and the capital was moved to the new city of Washington DC.

In 1790, the second Election was held. This election returned a pro-administration of 39-30 in the House, and a pro-administration majority of 8-5 in the Senate. From 1790-1792, Congress continued to pass legislation to help build up the government, including establishing a national bank and a functional judicial system. In 1792, the pro-administration faction in the House won a majority of 53 Representatives to the anti-administration’s 52, and every member of the Executive Council was reelected. Interestingly, Washington did not want to serve a second term, but Congress believed that he was the only person who was capable of leading the country, and that it needed a strong leader who could unite it. He reluctantly accepted the appointment, and was sworn in soon after.

By this time, the French Revolution was in full swing, and public opinion was strongly in favor of the French Republic. The government was split over what action to take. Washington and Hamilton strongly opposed the path that the French were taking, viewing the Republic as a terrorist state, while Jefferson was supportive of the end of a monarchy and the spread of liberty and human rights throughout Europe. This split the government down the middle, resulting in gridlock and paralysis. Congress was unable to pass any bills relating to foreign policy, due to not wanting to go to war with England, while not wanting to abandon France at the same time.

In the 1794 election, Hamilton and his supporters, to Washington’s dismay, ran under the banner of the Federalist Party. In response, Jefferson and his supporters formed the Democratic-Republican Party. The Democratic-Republicans won 56 seats in the House to the Federalists’ 49. The Federalists were the strongest in the New England states, while the Democratic-Republicans were the strongest in the South, with the other states having much weaker party loyalty. The new Congress recognized the French Republic and began to sideline the previously powerful Executive Council when Washington and Hamilton objected. It reversed the trend of centralization, and lifted many of Hamilton’s tariffs, hurting the Federalist states in New England, which were dependent on them.

In 1796, the Democratic-Republicans increased their majority with 59 states, while the Federalists won 46. Washington refused to be elected again, and not a single member of the Executive Council was reelected. Jefferson chose to run for the House instead, and James Madison was elected Secretary of State and President of the new Executive Council. One of Congress’s first acts was to abolish the Bank of the United States, dealing another blow to Hamilton’s legacy. The new administration adhered to a much stricter reading of the Constitution that the previous had, and it refused to intervene in state affairs at all.

In 1798, the makeup of Congress stayed similar, with 58 Democratic-Republicans and 47 Federalists. While the Republicans had been initially supportive of the French Republic, relations began to grow more hostile as the French navy began attacking and capturing American ships. When diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis failed, Congress was forced to begin using the Navy against French ships. The conflict was resolved after two years, when French Consul Napoleon Bonaparte and Secretary of State James Madison signed a treaty guaranteeing American shipping rights, and relations began to normalize between the two countries.

The 1800 election returned a large Democratic-Republican majority. The Republicans was 60 seats, while the Federalists, lead by Alexander Hamilton, won 45. At this point, the Federalists were concentrated almost entirely in New England, New Jersey, and Delaware, while the Republicans controlled the rest of the states. Madison was easily reelected President of the Executive Council, and continued to pursue a policy of peace with France, while remaining mildly hostile to the British.

By this time, the President of the Executive Council had emerged as the clear leader of the nation. He was originally intended to just be the first among equals, but, with the emergence of parties, the position had gone to a major party leader, while the Council’s other members had become subordinate to the President. The government was under the control of the Democratic-Republican Party, led by Jefferson in Congress and Madison in the Executive Council, and the Federalists were virtually powerless.

The Democratic-Republicans maintained their majority of 60 representatives in the 1802 election, but in 1803, Madison made the controversial decision to buy the Louisiana Territory from the French Consulate, provoking an outcry. The Republicans won a majority of 59 Representatives in 1804, but Madison was forced to step down. Jefferson was elected President of the Executive Council to replace him, continuing Democratic-Republican dominance.
 
This is a very interesting concept. Thomas Jefferson attends the Constitutional Convention, and so the New Jersey Plan ends up as part of the Constitution (well, not really, as part the Virginia Plan gets in as well). Also, an Executive Council? Wow.

I look forward to seeing more of this timeline.
 
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