Hello and welcome to a history of the United States.

Episode 181, Democratic-Republican Ideology.

Last time out, we watched the rivalry between Hamilton and Jefferson simmer over Washington's first few years in office,

leaving things in the awesome of 1792.

Today, I want to start things with an issue that both

Hamilton and Jefferson actually agreed on. Washington simply had to stay in office.

Washington did not want to serve a second term as president. He was now 60 years old, and he was tired. It was nearly 10 years since the

end of the Revolutionary War when he promised to return to private life. Washington was concerned

that people would start to think he had monarchical ambitions. He attempted to put off the decision while

everybody tries to convince him to stay. Jefferson argued that he was the only man in the country

above party, while Hamilton made the ultimate argument. Retirement in the current crisis would damage his reputation. It may not feel

so significant to us now, with the 2020 vision offered to us by hindsight, but the country was at a

critical moment. There was chaos along the frontier with attacks from the Indians and threats

from Spain and Britain. The whiskey rebellion crisis was escalating, while internationally,

the war of the first coalition against revolutionary France had broken out, involving Britain, Spain,

Prussia and the Holy Roman Empire.

Washington had to stay. And so he did. He received every single electoral college vote for the second time.

The race for the vice presidency was a lot closer. John Adams received 77 votes, while Governor George Clinton of New York received 50.

Hamilton preferred Adams to Clinton, but Adams was indignant that the race had been that close.

His response, he actually said, was,

You'll see that an elective government will not do.

It's also worth noting that in third place for vice president was Thomas Jefferson with four

...