George Washington
As the first president, George Washington had no role model to look to. He didn't know how a president was supposed to behave. Previous leaders of countries were primarily monarchs and the American Revolution was fought to break free from the control of a monarch. Despite this, some Americans were willing to make Washington a king.Washington established some basic precedents (actions that future presidents would follow) during his presidency:
1) He chose a cabinet. These advisers would help him to make wise decisions in office. He chose Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State, Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Knox as Secretary of War and Edmund Randolph as Attorney General. The Constitution does not mention a cabinet, but all presidents since Washington have chosen one. Thus, it is part of the US government tradition, or the unwritten constitution.
2) He organized a militia to stop the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania. They had been protesting the Whiskey Tax that which would made their products more expensive for consumers to buy. This showed that the new national government would enforce the laws that it passed. Before the Constitution, there had been another rebellion called Shays' Rebellion which showed how chaotic the country could become without a stronger national government.
3) Washington avoided foreign military conflicts with his Proclamation of Neutrality. He declared that the US would side with neither Britain nor France in the war in 1793. When leaving office, Washington reiterated this position in his Farewell Address by telling the country to avoid making "permanent alliances" with foreign nations.
4) He chose to leave the presidency and become a private citizen after serving two terms (8 years). This tradition would be followed by future presidents for about 150 years. In that time it was part of the unwritten constitution. After Franklin Roosevelt broke the tradition by being elected to four terms, Congress and the states passed the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution limiting all presidents to a maximum of two terms.
Questions:
1) France helped the US gain independence from Britain in the American Revolution. Did the US owe France help in their fight against Britain?
2) Is neutrality always the best policy?
3) Are there any weaknesses to this policy? Are there any strengths to this policy?
4) Is neutrality a wise policy for the US to follow today?
Bill Clinton on Presidential Term Limits:
"Shouldn't the people have the right to vote for someone as many times as they want to vote for him?"
"...our country might face a crisis that a former president is uniquely qualified to help solve. The American public should have that option."
5) Is it wise to have passed an amendment to the Constitution barring presidents from serving more than two terms? Should it have remained in the unwritten constitution, (i.e. just a tradition)?
# 4 I think neutrality for the united states today would be one of the smartest moves in history. The united states is a superpower today and when ever they get involved it causes a big problem because it causes a shift in power between the countries who actuality had the problem. the united states gets involved and problem becomes greater than it actuality was to begin with. also when ever the US want to keep neutral they decide to keep neutral on the important things like when a genocide is occurring the US wants to keep neutral. The united states keeping neutral is good and bad depending on the situation. For example going into war over "let me check if your making nuclear weapons" while keeping neutral for several years during the Holocaust is very confusing because the US is willing to fight to see how much nuclear weapons a country has over saving millions of peoples lives.
ReplyDeleteInteresting perspective and well stated, Sidorela. I do have a question though. Should the US be indifferent about foreign nations that are hostile to the US getting nuclear weapons?
ReplyDelete1) The US did not owe France help in their fight against Britain. Yes it is true that the French helped America with their revolutionary war but the French did so base on their own interest. The assistance in the American Revolution was not a sign of alliance it was merely self interest. Plus America could not afford entering the war between France and Britain, they were setting up their own country.
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ReplyDelete#5: in my opinion it wasn't wise to have passed an amendment to the constitution that limited presidential term to two terms because as Bill Clinton said it should be the people that decide how long a president should stay in power. With that said i believe that it should of remained in the unwritten constitution because since it wasn't written in any document people could of kept voting for the president they wanted and also could of decided how long they wanted him to stay as president.
ReplyDeleteBenson,
ReplyDeletei do not understand why it is that america can have the amount of nuclear weapons that can destroy the earth 8 times but then when other countries build up their nuclear weapons they want to shut them down. isn't very hypocritical? The united states wants to remain a super power and repress everyone because every country is a threat to the united state. there is no way that countries wouldn't be against the united states because the US is so powerful and when ever someone tries to challenge that power they repress them. i think form being in the united states we don't quite think of the other party. for example the bombing of pearl harbor killed around 3000 while the US entering the war killed millions, and although the bombing of pearl harbor was a tragedy was it worth going to war for. the united states did not enter to end the Holocaust they entered because of the attack. so then why is it that those 3000 lives caused millions of deaths in which were caused by americans . personally i believe everything that the united states does is all political and just plain power struggle. They take selfish actions and manipulate them to their liking to not be criticized, just like jefferson did with the Luisiana Purchase. i personally think that is wrong.