George Washington's Presidency
Annotated Timeline
1st Election
Citizens wrote names on a ballot for whom they thought should be the president. As a result, our country elected George Washington to be the first president of the United States. Though he was reluctant, he took up the position.
What Do We Call Our Leader?
One conflict about electing a president is that the term "president" was not being used. There was an issue on what to call Washington, though some suggested calling him "Your Excellency." This was a problem because they felt this sounded too much like what you'd refer to a king as. Washington settled the conflict by telling people to refer to him as "Mr. President."
Judiciary Act
In 1789, Congress passed the Judiciary Act. The Judiciary Act set up the Supreme Court system, as well as how it was run then. The same system still exists today, but the amount of associates have risen.
President's Precendents
Another key part of George Washington's presidency was the introduction of the President's Precedents. These precedents took care of very important parts of government, like economy, war, and relations with other countries.
Whiskey Rebellion
In order to solve our economic issue, Congress decided to pass a law taxing luxury items. This included whiskey. In protest, farmers and other settlers simply refused to pay the tax. They gathered to protest the issue in even more intensity, but the government sent a militia to control the protest, and it ended immediately.
Founding Our Nation's Capital
Another dispute was where our nation's capitol would be placed. Both the North and the South wanted the capitol to be in their territory. In order to pay off debt, Alexander Hamilton struck a deal with southern states. They would help pay off debt for the northern states and in return the capitol would be located in their region. The location that was decided would be dubbed the District of Columbia.
National Bank
In order to ever further boost our economy, the secretary of the treasury built the national bank. This bank would help because they would be able to collect taxes, create one national currency, and gives loans to businesspeople so they could build ships and factories.
Political Parties
A main debate point was between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists. Thomas Jefferson supported the Anti-Federalists, or Republicans. Opposing them was Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists. This separation scared Washington so much that he ran for a second term just to keep the country together.
George's Farewell
As Washington's second term came to an end, he wrote and published a farewell letter that would be published in the Philadelphia Paper. His letter included two major warnings. These basically said to steer clear of permanent alliances with foreign countries, and to not let political parties grow.