HEMP CONSTITUTION
The Articles of Confederation drafted in the early days before the Revolution
were idealistic but they were not very practical. In fact, they proved
cumbersome and often unworkable — especially when it came to inter-colony
(or interstate) commerce — and the Constitutional Convention of
1787 was called specifically to address these problems. Alexander Hamilton
(who had been George Washington's military aide) pushed for the adoption
of a whole new founding document, and we got our Constitution as the result.
The years between the defeat of Cornwallis at York town in 1781 and the
opening of the Constitutional Convention of 1787 was a period during which
all sorts of people, for all sorts of reasons, were trying to shape America's
character. Hamilton was the leading proponent for an elitist society that,
like everywhere else in the world, would place its reliance on (and serve
the interests of) those with the most resources. Today, to suggest that
the wealthy are better qualified to run things smacks of elitism. Back
then, it was reasonably assumed that only men with money could have access
to education and a wider knowledge of the world, and only they would have
the leisure to think through and work out larger problems. Success is
also, sometimes, a measure of ability, after all. In this spirit. Hamilton
and those who thought like him decided to exploit the flaws in the Articles
of Confederation and suggest it was beyond repair. In fact, they managed
to replace the Articles of Confederation (under which the individual states
retained power) with a document that gave power to a central government
— the federal government.
Probably because of his influence with the banking and financial leaders,
Hamilton attended the convention as a New York State representative. Hamilton
was a difficult, ambitious man, and many — includingjohn Adams and
Thomas Jefferson — neither trusted nor liked him. Hamilton was later
killed in a duel with Aaron Burr, a former Vice President of the United
States; but Hamilton had Washington's trust.
When Hamilton revealed his proposal, a \icious debate broke out. (It is
still going on.) People generally felt allegiance to their states, not
a central government. The delegates quickly fell into two camps and created
competing political parties. The Hamilton forces were known as the Federalists
(creators of a federal government) and the opposition, led principally
by Samuel Adams, became known as the Anti-Federalists. Hamilton, however,
had done his homework, and the government he proposed was far better organized
than that which was sketched out or hinted at under the Articles of Confederation.
After all, the other side had not prepared for such an event as this.
In the end, even Sam Adams agreed with the new plan. Under the Articles
of Confederation, the ultimate power was in the hands of the people, whereas
under the Constitution the three branches of the federal government —
the legislative (Congress), judicial and the executive — held the
power. One compromise that was made was the inclusion of a Bill of Rights,
which essentially protected people's rights and set limits on the government's
power.
The birth of the US Constitution was a long drawn out and very democratic
process that lasted from February through September. Many of the delegates
would go home for weeks at a time, but they always returned. Near the
end of that lengthy and trying process another fight broke out over the
issue of slavery, in large part because a number of black slaves had won
their freedom fighting side by-side with white colonists for freedom from
England. There was some sentiment that the rest of them should be freed
as well; but the greatest priority was to keep England at bay, and that
meant avoiding any public display of weakness or dissension in the ranks.
It was essential to demonstrate that the colonies were able to govern
themselves — or perhaps the British would have tried to take back
its colonies before 1812! The primary goal now was to craft an agreement
on a new form of government which could be sent to the individual states
for ratification.
Southern delegates exploded when confronted with the idea of ending slavery.
Most of them supported Hamilton's vision and considered themselves part
of the "Federalist Party "They threatened to walkout. Tt wasn't
an idle threat. In the late 1780s, slavery was still permitted under British
law, and during the Revolutionary War the British found the colonists
in Virginia and points .south considerably more hospitable and agreeable
than their Massachusetts brethren. And the South stayed closer to Britain
for a long, long time. During the Civil War almost one hundred years later,
the British bought Southern cotton and probably presided the Confederacy
with weapons — a vital support, given that the Southern states had
very little industry.
The slavery issue was threatening final passage of the Constitution and
the foundation of a viable new nation. That would suggest to England that
the colonies were fragmented and perhaps were militarily vulnerable. The
Northern delegates abandoned their anti-slavery position, for the moment,
because they believed the birth of the United States was more important.
Of course, in the ensuing decades the slavery-based cotton industry was
increasingly an economic threat to the Northern hemp farmers, and that
helped lead to the Civil War.
Not everyone agreed that the Constitution should be ratified, particularly
given its provision for shifting power to a central (federal) government.28
Many people saw that as a betrayal that would lead to creating an American
aristocracy. In 1792, in fact. Jefferson ran for the presidency as the
nominee of the (liberal) A nti-Federalist Party — and did so specifically
to counter Hamilton's influence on George Washington.
The Federalist Party candidates, Washington and Adams, trounced Jefferson.
By the 1796 elections, the A nti-Federalist Party had reinvented itself
twice — first, ironically, as the "Republican' Party, probably
reflecting George Clinton's influence, and later as the Democratic-Re
publican Party, reflecting Jefferson's influence. (George Clinton was
a member of the Second Continental Congress. During the Revolution he
was charged with defending the Hudson River Valley, which he failed to
do; he was more successful as governor of the state of New York, where
he developed a strong state-based power center in the course of seven
terms, and as Vice President under Jefferson and Madison.)
After the Constitution was ratified and Washington was inaugurated as
president, the focus quickly changed to the establishment of the government.
Washington needed the cooperation of the financial powers to help build
and finance the government, and Hamilton (Secretary of the Treasury) was
essentially his conduit. Hamilton eventually became the de facto leader
of the Federalist Part)-. But Jefferson, as Secretary of State, distrusted
Hamilton's proposals and motives, and suspected that he and others in
the emerging Federalist Party were secretly plotting to implant monarchist
ideals (an aristocracy) and institutions in the government.
Hamilton also became a political enemy of Aaron Burr; as Treasury Secretary,
Hamilton imposed some early regulation on Wall Street brokers like him.
Aaron Burr had all sorts of ambitions. He wanted to start a bank but didn't
want his name associated with it, so he founded a water company and opened
a bank through that company. The bank grew to become the Chase Manhattan
Bank; Burr went on to become a popular New York Senator.
Washington, fed up with politics and anxious to get home, was reluctant
to run for a second term but did so for two reasons. There was still a
long way to go in creating the government the Constitution called for.
and he believed the country needed both Hamilton and Jefferson, his two
most trusted (and most incompatible) advisors. Hamilton probably also
encouraged Washington to run for a second term, knowing that without him
he would lose his power base. Washington won reelection by nearly a 2-1
margin and Adams again came in second, making him vice president under
the rules of the day.
Jefferson and Hamilton did have deep-seated philosophical differences.
Jefferson believed the government should operate for the benefit of the
average people, and Hamilton believed that those who invested their money
in America should be rewarded. Hamilton believed in what we have come
to know as "trickle-down economics" and a ruling class.
Jefferson s philosophy was extremely progressive for his rime, and clearly
not everyone shared his belief that, as stated in the Declaration of Independence,
"all men were created equal" or that the United States government
should be created as a "government of the people, by the people and
for rhe people." Many of his contemporaries, especially those of
wealth, were not willing to give up their advantages They believed that
people of means were more capable and more entitled to leadership than
others. Obviously, this basically left out the working class, women in
general, blacks, and Indians. Of course, among the "non-elite,"
Hamilton's views were not very well received. Average Americans were glad
to have gnt the snobbish Brits off their backs; they were not about to
foster a new elitism among their own neighbors. Jefferson's vision, breaking
with that sort of tradition, drew on new notions of equality and rights
that were beginning to circulate in Europe in the 1700s.
Washington often sided with Hamilton, which angered a great many people
includingjohn Adams. Adams ran as a Federalist, hoping to regain the vice-presidency
and to challenge Hamilton's growing control of the Federalist Party. Jefferson,
George Clinton, and Aaron Burr all ran as Anti-Federalists, directly challenging
Hamilton and his cronies. Washington s popularity' won out, allowing him,
Adams, and the Federalists to remain in power Unfortunately for Washington,
the bickering continued: it became almost constant. Washington made clear
his intentions to return to his Mount Vernon home and live the rest of
his life as a private citizen, when his term ended. The search for his
replacement revealed that the population was just as ideologically split
as were Jefferson and Hamilton, and the opposition between the two political
parties became even greater. Upon leaving office. Washington noted that
his biggest disappointment was his inability to resolve these ideological
differences.
Although Adams and Jefferson liked one another and were not very far apart
ideologically, a deep rift developed in their relationship during the
election of 1796. when they competed for the presidency. In fact, they
did not speak to each other for quite a few years. Adams beat Jefferson
by a margin of only three Electoral College votes, which meant Jefferson
served as Adam's vice-president. This was the first election that Jefferson
ran as the nominee of the Democratic-Republican Party. Adams didn't like
Hamilton and did not invite him to serve in the administration. Hamilton's
career in "public service" abruptly ended, although he was still
very influential within the Federalist Party.
John Adams was a fairly good president, but he simply could not win reelection
as the nominee of the Federalist Party, which was now totally controlled
by Hamilton and his supporters. In fact, the Federalists never won another
election (which is hardly surprising since, during the War of 1812, they
supported the British).
After Adams and Jefferson retired from polirics, they renewed their friendship
by mail, and that friendship lasted until the day they both died, within
a couple of hours of each other, on July 4,1826 — the fiftieth anniversary
of the passage of the Declaration of Independence and the birth of the
nation.
The presidential election of 1800 ended in a virtual electoral tie between
Jefferson and fellow Democratic Republican Aaron Burr; Adams {the Federalist)
finished a close third. The House of Representatives decided the winner,
and that was Jefferson. Here again, Hamilton played a decisive role as
an influential Federalist Party boss. The House Federalists preferred
Rurr; but Hamilton, now living in New York, disliked Burr even more than
he disliked Jefferson. At least, he respected Jefferson. Burr became Jefferson's
vice-president; but Jefferson didn't trust him and. in fact. Burr did
begin cultivating his federalist friends and trying to boost his own position
of power. Burr was dropped from the ticket in the 1804 election and he
entered New York gubernatorial race. Heavily involved in New York politics,
Hamilton did everything possible to undermine Burr's political chances.
The bad blood between Burr and Hamilton deteriorated into an ongoing exchange
of derogatory comments and name calling, and some of Hamilton's remarks
were printed in New York's newspapers. Burr demanded Hamilton retract
his comments; Hamilton refused. The confrontation escalated into a duel,
and Burr shot and killed Hamilton.
With or without Hamilton, and despite all their money, the Federalists
were politically dead. Still, committed Federalists ran presidential candidates
against Jefferson's enormously popular successors. James Madison and James
Monroe; they were soundly defeated. There was really only one viable political
party in America and that was Jefferson's Democrat-Republican party —
which consisted primarily of a coalition of groups who found a common
ground in their opposition to Hamilton and his wealthy elitist cronies.
While Jefferson and Hamilton are long gone, the basic class struggle between
the haves and have-nots, and the bases of their philosophical differences,
are still with us. In his landmark book The Radicalism of the American
Rcvolu-lion, historian Gordon Wood points out that "America's 1776
Revolution was not seen as radical by the French. It was not a class-based
uprising of the downtrodden. The American Revolution was, and continues
as, a revolt against the misuse of government by elites to promote their
own interests against the people's." What's that got to do with hemp?
The demise of hemp as an essential part of our economy and daily life
was also the result of elites promoting their own interests, as will be
discussed in later sections.
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