[117], In contrast to Franklin, Adams viewed the Franco-American alliance pessimistically. "[68], News of the opening hostilities with the British at the Battles of Lexington and Concord made Adams hope that independence would soon become a reality. [41], Adams also reprised his pen name "Humphrey Ploughjogger" in opposition to the Stamp Act in August of that year. [251] In 1800, he signed the law establishing the Library of Congress. Pennsylvania senator William Maclay complained that when the Senate considered the matter on May 8, 1789, the vice president "repeatedly helped the speakers for Titles." John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, November 15, 1813. "[83], Prior to independence being declared, Adams organized and selected a Committee of Five charged with drafting a Declaration of Independence. [274], Adams resumed farming at Peacefield in the town of Quincy and began work on an autobiography. [334] Historian Clinton Rossiter portrays Adams not as a monarchist but a revolutionary conservative who sought to balance republicanism with the stability of monarchy to create "ordered liberty. List, by state, of Representatives and Senators in the 2d session of the Second Congress of the United States. The practice of not campaigning for office would remain for many decades. "[362] He has always been seen, Ferling says, as "honest and dedicated", but despite his lengthy career in public service, Adams is still overshadowed by the dramatic military and political achievements and strong personalities of his contemporaries. [93] He was referred to as a "one man war department," working up to eighteen-hour days and mastering the details of raising, equipping and fielding an army under civilian control. Maclay, who served in the Senate for the first two years of Adams's initial vice-presidential term, never forgave Adams and petulantly noted in his diary that the vice president's "Pride Obstinacy And Folly" were "equal to his Vanity.". The affair substantially weakened popular American support of France. Speaking for a majority of the senators, William Maclay of Pennsylvania quickly called Adams to account. Hamilton exploited to his advantage the constitutional provision governing the election of the president and vice president. [248], Adams's leadership on naval defense has sometimes led him to be called the "father of the American Navy. The King added that although "he had been the last to consent" to American independence, he wanted Adams to know that he had always done what he thought was right. He served on a committee of three, also including Samuel Adams and James Bowdoin, to draft the constitution. Being from Massachusetts, Adams' election provided the administration a regional balance between the South and North. Adams filled the vacancies created in this statute by appointing a series of judges, whom his opponents called the "Midnight Judges," just days before his term expired. To ensure that they received a fair trial, John Adams represented the British soldiers accused of the 1770 Boston Massacre even though he was opposed to British taxation. "It is not for me," he assured the Senate, "to interrupt your deliberations by any general observations on the state of the nation, or by recommending, or proposing any particular measures.". His signing of the Alien and Sedition Acts is almost always condemned.[358]. [131] During these negotiations, Adams mentioned to the British that his proposed fishing terms were more generous than those offered by France in 1778 and that accepting would foster goodwill between Britain and the United States while putting pressure on France. When Washington announced his intention to retire his party, the Federalist, nominated Adams and Thomas Pickney as their candidates for President. And indeed it would have been inconsistent in creation to have formed man for the social state, and not to have provided virtue and wisdom enough to manage the concerns of society. In October, he negotiated with the Dutch a treaty of amity and commerce. [7] John Sr. served as a selectman (town councilman) and supervised the building of schools and roads. They appealed to Adams requesting a pardon. Addressing the Senate for the first time on April 21, 1789, he offered the caveat that although "not wholly without experience in public assemblies," he was "more accustomed to take a share in their debates, than to preside in their deliberations." [46], With the repeal of the Stamp Act in early 1766, tensions with Britain temporarily eased. Surveys of historians and scholars have favorably ranked his administration. [353] Adams was often combative, which diminished presidential decorum, as he admitted in his old age: "[As President] I refused to suffer in silence. The treatise defended bicameralism, for "a single assembly is liable to all the vices, follies and frailties of an individual. [272] Marshall's long tenure left a lasting influence on the Court. Although Washington rarely consulted Adams on domestic or foreign policy matters, the two men, according to Adams biographer, John Ferling, "jointly executed many more of the executive branch's ceremonial undertakings than would be likely for a contemporary president and vice-president." [145] Each state's presidential electors gathered on February 4, 1789, to cast their two votes for the president. Adams spent the remainder of his life in retirement at his farm in Quincy, Massachusetts. [338], According to Luke Mayville, Adams synthesized two strands of thought: practical study of past and present governments, and Scottish Enlightenment thinking concerning individual desires expressed in politics. [344], Frazer (2004) notes that while he shared many perspectives with deists and often used deistic terminology, "Adams clearly was not a deist. [310] Some delegates urged Adams to commit his views to paper. [115] A leak in the ship forced it to land in Ferrol, Spain, and Adams and his party spent six weeks travelling overland until they reached Paris. In the Evening, I can be alone at my Office, and no where else." Jefferson terminated it by not replying to Abigail's fourth letter. John Adams was the 2nd President of the United States. John Adams (1735-1826), who served as the first vice president of the United States and then as its second President, also influenced the development of constitutional government through his political writings and thought. John Adams . [191] Adams maintained the economic programs of Hamilton, who regularly consulted with key cabinet members, especially the powerful Treasury Secretary, Oliver Wolcott Jr.[192] Adams was in other respects quite independent of his cabinet, often making decisions despite opposition from it. John Adams (October 30 1735 - July 4, 1826) was the second president of the United States (1797-1801), having earlier served as the first vice president of the United States (1789-1797). On April 21, 1789, John Adams, the first vice president of the United States, began his duties as president of the Senate. In the absence of a manual governing Senate debates, Adams looked to British parliamentary procedures for guidance in deciding questions of order. Adams had decided to shelve it over fears that it could negatively impact John Quincy should he ever seek office. Brother of Peter Boylston Adams Esq and Elihu Adams. [129], In the final negotiations, securing fishing rights off Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island proved both very important and very difficult. The Act was imposed by the British Parliament without consulting the American legislatures. [277] His frugal lifestyle and presidential salary had left him with a considerable fortune by 1801. The French, Adams wrote, meant to keep their hands "above our chin to prevent us from drowning, but not to lift our heads out of water. As a member of the town meeting, Adams drafted instructions for the Braintree delegate to the Massachusetts provincial assembly, known as the General Court, which met in October 1765 to formulate the colony's response to the Stamp Act. As Jefferson later acknowledged, Adams was the Declaration's "pillar of support on the floor of Congress, its ablest advocate and defender." On November 27, Adams accepted, wasting no time. When Washington announced that he would not run for a third term, Adams, his vice president, ran and was elected president in 1796. [331], Throughout his lifetime Adams expressed controversial and shifting views regarding the virtues of monarchical and hereditary political institutions. (1735 - 1826) President John Adams. [73] He praised Washington's "skill and experience" as well as his "excellent universal character. [320] Yet Wood was accused of ignoring Adams's peculiar definition of the term "republic," and his support for a constitution ratified by the people. [252] Unlike many other Founders, Adams does not have a monument dedicated to him in Washington, D.C.,[370] although a family inclusive Adams Memorial was authorized in 2001 and awaits funding. Alexander Hamilton led the Federalist, who supported a strong central government, closer ties with England and was business and industry friendly. The general court reelected Adams the following year, but Hutchinson's successor, Thomas Gage, again prevented him from serving on the council. On April 21 in Lower Manhattan's Federal Hall, John Adams was sworn in as the first vice president. Adams again questioned the loyalty of those men but did not remove them. Adams was originally optimistic and greatly enjoyed the city, but soon became disappointed. Trumbull cautioned that "he who mingles in debate subjects himself to frequent retorts from his opposers, places himself on the same ground with his inferiors in rank, appears too much like the leader of a party, and renders it more difficult for him to support the dignity of the chair and preserve order and regularity in the debate." [359] When his name was mentioned, it was typically not in a favorable way. Adams served as president from 1797 to 1801. And when Washington retired in 1796, John stood for president and was elected as a Federalist, though Martin says he was only loosely affiliated with the party. 48, 49 (2001)). [176][186] It is noteworthy that Hamilton's scheme, although it made the Federalists appear divided and therefore helped Jefferson win, failed in its overall attempt to woo Federalist electors away from Adams. Read More. ... Adams did believe in miracles, providence, and, to a certain extent, the Bible as revelation. [217] Adams knew that America would be unable to win a major conflict, both because of its internal divisions and because France at the time was dominating the fight in most of Europe. Federalists accused the French and their associated immigrants of provoking civil unrest. He criticizes him for his "pettiness ... jealousy, and vanity", and faults him for his frequent separations from his wife and children. [259], Opposition from the Federalist Party was at times equally intense. [50] The remaining soldiers were tried in December when Adams made his legendary argument regarding jury decisions: "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence. That question was whether to make war with France or find peace. "[207] Benjamin Franklin Bache, editor of the Philadelphia Aurora, blamed Adams's aggression as the cause of the disaster. Notwithstanding his lack of experience as a presiding officer, Adams had definite notions regarding the limitations of his office. As a diplomat in Europe, he helped negotiate a peace treaty with Great Britain and secured vital governmental loans. They failed to take into account the strong Puritan sense of moral rectitude that prevented Adams from striking such a bargain, even to achieve an office to which he clearly felt entitled. Content Responsibility | The general court subsequently elected Adams to the first and second Continental congresses. Finding few opportunities for a struggling young attorney in Braintree, the young family moved in 1768 to Boston, where John's practice flourished. "[164] Adams's behavior made him a target for critics of the Washington administration. He returned to farming life in the months after. He was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and also helped negotiate the Treaty of Paris. He failed to win a second term due to the popular outcry against the repressive Alien and Sedition Acts, which he had reluctantly approved as necessary wartime measures, as well as the rupture in the Federalist Party over the end of hostilities with France.
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