The Pros And Cons Of John Adams

As he readily approved the new federal Constitution in 1788, like other Federalists such as Alexander Hamilton and George Washington, John Adams believed in a strong, central government and a “loose” interpretation that allowed the government to exercise implied powers. The President, he thought, should be freed from the shackles of the Senate when creating treaties and appointments, and also retain absolute veto power over all legislature. He argued that “Democracy never lasts long,” in the Letters of John and Abigail Adams, that “it soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself, for a government ruled by uneducated mobs is equal to “committing suicide.” In other words, Adams had completely lost the faith in his countrymen whom lacked political …show more content…
The Jay’s Treaty became main issue in 1796 because the Federalists, who supported the British, and the Democratic-Republicans’, who supported the French, relationship intensified into a feud. Despite the policy of neutrality, John Adams pondered whether he should remain loyal to France or support the British to prevent French domination of Europe. The XYZ Affair marked the deteriorating relationship between France and America when Talleyrand, instead of formally receiving the American envoys, demanded a personal bribery and an loan for France. Thus, the Congress had already decided to annul the Treaty of Alliance of 1778 with France, which resulted in the Quasi-War. Although Adams still urged to maintain peace, he did not oppose the accumulating relationship with the British who supported the annulment and assisted America at sea against the “common enemy.” In 1789, Adams sent William Murray to negotiate peace with Napoleon. The Convention of 1800 formally terminated the alliance with France and freed United States out of foreign entanglements, but it perhaps strengthened those with the