From the 1790s until the 1820s, there were two primary political movements in the United States. There was the Federalist party of Alexander Hamilton, calling for a strong central government that fostered economic growth and friendly ties with Great Britain. The "Democratic Republican" or party on the other hand was founded by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in opposition to the centralizing policies of the Federalist party. These Jeffersonian's were deeply committed to Republicanism, opposing aristocracy in any form and advocated a very narrow interpretation of Article 1 of the Constitution which granted powers to the federal government.
During the presidency of George Washington and that of John Adams, they both supported Alexander Hamilton's program for a financially strong government including internal taxes on every day Americans. In 1800, Thomas Jefferson called his election 'The revolution of 1800'. In this election the people had to choose between John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. The Federalist feared that Jefferson would dismantle the army, destroy the Hamilton financial system, and return power to the states. They attacked Jefferson as an atheist, a political fanatic and a drunkard. In one political cartoon they painted him as a man who would partner with the devil and brandy if needed to tear down the central government. The election was extremely close, and it was the constitution's three-fifths clause that gave the Republicans a majority in Congress. Yet, in the electoral college the vote ended in a tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. It was then sent to the Federalist controlled House of Representatives. Federalists like Alexander Hamilton had much dislike for Jefferson, but in the end they believed Jefferson to be a much more honorable man then Aaron Burr. Thomas Jefferson became president and brought with him "Jeffersonian Democracy."
In his first joint address to Congress, Thomas Jefferson introduced his theory of government. This young nation was poised for a population explosion, but Jefferson was not looking to become a great world power, rather a great land of liberty. America's vacant land would become settled by "the multiplication of men susceptible of happiness, educated in the love of order, habituated to self-government, and valuing its blessings above all price." The essence of Jeffersonian Democracy: "self government".
"I lay before you the result of the census lately taken of our inhabitants, to a conformity with which we are now to reduce the ensuing ration of representation and taxation. You will perceive that the increase of numbers during the last 10 years, proceeding in geometric ratio, promises a duplication in little more than 22 years. We contemplate this rapid growth and the prospect it holds up to us, not with a view to the injuries it may enable us to do others in some future day, but to the settlement of the extensive country still remaining vacant within our limits to the multiplication of men susceptible of happiness, educated in the love of order, habituated to self-government, and valuing its blessings above all price."One of his first orders of business was to repeal all internal taxes. Jefferson explained that considering current circumstances and the great population growth occurring, it was possible to "safely dispense with all the internal taxes, comprehending excise, stamps, auctions, licenses, carriages, and refined sugars". Jefferson also added postage on newspapers to this list, which he felt was important to facilitate the progress of information. President Jefferson suggested that the remaining sources of revenue which were primarily duties and tariffs on trade would prove to be sufficient to provide for the support of government and pay it's debts.
"Other circumstances, combined with the increase of numbers, have produced an augmentation of revenue arising from consumption in a ratio far beyond that of population alone; and though the changes in foreign relations now taking place so desirably for the whole world may for a season affect this branch of revenue, yet weighing all probabilities of expense as well as of income, there is reasonable ground of confidence that we may now safely dispense with all the internal taxes, comprehending excise, stamps, auctions, licenses, carriages, and refined sugars, to which the postage on news papers may be added to facilitate the progress of information, and that the remaining sources of revenue will be sufficient to provide for the support of Government, to pay the interest of the public debts, and to discharge the principals within shorter periods than the laws or the general expectation had contemplated."
So, President Jefferson appointed Albert Gallatin his Secretary of Treasurer and abolished all internal taxes including the dreaded "whiskey tax". The Napoleonic Wars in Europe stimulated the economy of the United States and customs duties swelled the federal treasury. By 1806, revenue from duties brought in the first federal surplus.
In Jefferson's second address to congress, he was pleased to inform congress that the receipts collected from external duties had increased year over in a big way. It seems to be his way of telling Congress that his tax plan was working.
"In the Department of Finance it is with pleasure I inform you, that the receipts of external duties for the last 12 months have exceeded those of any former year, and that the ration of increase has been also greater than usual. This has enabled us to answer all the regular exigencies of Government, to pay from the Treasury within 1 year upward of $8M, principal and interest, of the public debt, exclusive of upward of $1M paid by the sale of bank stock, and making in the whole a reduction of nearly $5.5M of principal, and to have now in the Treasury $4.5M which are in a course of application to the further discharge of debt and current demands. "Later in 1802, Jefferson gave a status on shutting down collection of internal taxes.
"The collection of the internal taxes having been completed in some of the States, the officers employed in it are of course out of commission. In others they will be so shortly. But in a few, where the arrangements for the direct tax had been retarded, it will be some time before the system is closed."http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=29443
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=29444
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffersonian_democracy
http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=2978
http://www.houseofpolitics.com/threads/thomas-jefferson-repealed-all-internal-taxes.898/
http://faculty.chemeketa.edu/thodgson/201ONSum/images/unit8/500tjdevil.jpg
No comments:
Post a Comment