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Explain Why The American Government Is Like A Track

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The “American government is like a train on a track”. You have the people on the left shouting; you have the people on the right. But the train is on track.” As stated by Tom Wolfe. This quote relates to the American System by Henry Clay and relates to the Financial Plan presented by Alexander Hamilton. Both relate to the quote because these economic problems are 2 sided like a train on a train track. This shows that the government should have a consequential role in the economy by developing a national bank, collecting taxes, and improving infrastructure (roads and canals). The national bank is something that the government should have a role in because it needs to be created. One reason why the government should create a national bank is …show more content…

Source 1 is from the Constitution, which gives Congress the ability “to regulate commerce with foreign Nations and among the several States.” As well as “to establish Post Offices and post Roads.” This proposes that the Constitution provides a foundation for the federal government to fund and evolve infrastructure plans that clear the way for interstate commerce and transportation. Source 2 President James Madison vetoed a bill to provide funds for improvements on things such as roads and canals, not because he was opposed to it but because he did not believe the constitution clearly stated such actions were granted to the federal government. This implies that James Madison knew the importance of infrastructure development but didn't believe it was constitutional. He even went so far as saying that “I am aware of the great importance of roads and canals and that a power in the national legislature to provide for them would be a good thing for the country. Source 5: Henry Clay’s speech to the U.S. He argues that the “American System”of internal improvements and tariffs like the 1824 which brought many benefits such as “Farming has expanded, and employment is high. Debt has been reduced, land is worth more, and a national market is slowly developing for American goods.” After the implementation of the 1824 tariff national debt decreased. This suggests that infrastructure projects helped with economic growth and development, according to Henry Clay. On the other hand, some people may feel that there are too many unconstitutional points here, but in Article 1 section 8 of the constitution it states “To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution [these] powers.” The laws that it is talking about are the laws that are “To lay and collect taxes. to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States. To

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A lot of nation’s investors found this alluring. It would also tie them to the new national government, since they would want that them to survive so they could get paid on their investment. Jefferson and Madison opposed Hamilton’s debt funding plan. They believed that

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Despite the financial troubles, most American’s still believed that American needed to commercially advance. Watson explained that Henry Clay’s American System, which was the Whig’s main platform, comprised of three main parts: economical protection via tariffs, transportation infrastructure and a banking and credit system that encourages the use of paper money. Clay believed that with the implementation of his economic system, citizens’ independence and individual prosperity would be improved. He believed that the improvement is a key idea in the republicanism ideology. On the other hand, Jackson preferred a simple agrarian society that had no place for a strong financial sector.

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1. One of Madison’s proposals that was rejected, was the idea to give Congress the power to veto any state laws. This would have changed the government today because every state law would have to be sent to congress in order to be passed. This would delay the nations lawmaking ability and create a jam. There would be thousands of laws in Congress waiting to be approved and it would end up taking years for one law to be passed.

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Knowing this, Clay thought to renew the Bank’s charter early in 1832 instead of 1836. He did this because he knew that Jackson was going to run for reelection in 1832 and he thought for sure that Jackson would never vote down a bill that would help the country dramatically if he was trying to win over the people of the United States. Jackson detested the bank so much that he vetoed the bill for an early renewal of the bills charter, “but renewal was still possible when the charter expired in 1836; to prevent that from happening, he set out to reduce the bank’s economic power”(Foner, Garraty). To diminish the banks power Jackson made an executive decision that he had

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The construction of railroads required vast quantities of steel, which led to the growth of the steel industry. Similarly, railroads helped to create a market for coal, which was used to power locomotives (White, 2011). The growth of these industries, in turn, created new jobs and further stimulated economic growth. Another important transportation development of the period was the construction of canals.

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One of the changes in American politics was the changing role of the federal government. This is evident in James Madison's veto message from 1817 where he expresses his difficulty in reconciling a bill for internal improvements with the Constitution (POV - Doc 2). This document reveals a shift in the understanding of the federal government's role in the economy and infrastructure, and the growing debate over the

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Madison in #10 argues about factions and how not to worry about the government. The Constitution would limit possibly factions and destroy the country. On the other hand, Jefferson believed in a weak government and a strong federal state. Anti-Federalists

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He also wrote the bonus bill that would have laid the foundation for nationwide network of roads and canals but President James Madison vetoed it. Calhoun went on to serve as a U.S. Secretary of war under President James Monroe. He was vice under President John Quincy Adams and briefly Secretary of State under President John Tyler. He argued the federal government was a creation of the states and the courts nor Congress were the negotiators of the constitutionality of federal laws (Brinkley

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Madison sticks to Jeffersonian ideals when he opposed the International Improvement Bill of 1817, because the power to regulate commerce is not specifically given to the federal government in the Constitution. In the message he wrote to Congress, He illustrates that this authority belongs to the states, which is an act of strict interpretation of the constitution. It also indicated the problem of sovereignty between states and the federal government. In fact, this action directly opposed that of the previous president Thomas Jefferson in regards to the Embargo Acts. Jefferson uses loose interpretation to say that the federal government does have the power to regulate commerce, while Madison complies with his party's beliefs of strict constructionism.

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He helped the american people by using his power in a correct and fair manner. Andrew Jackson helped americans by calling back unfair laws. For example Andrew Jackson vetoed the banks when he realized it would simply benefit the banks and not the american people. (Document F) He realized that the banks are bending the the rules a little too much for their own self interests and chose to put the banks back in place.

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James Madison's assertion, "Ambition must be made to counteract ambition," was a crucial development in the making of the American government. This quote shows that Madison knew that Americans had a strong ambition, which meant that these Americans' citizenship would be powerful. These men lived in America when the U.S. Constitution had an instructable will to be involved with the government based on their freedom from Great Britain, so these men would have a large percentage in popular participation and would take advantage of their citizenship. Therefore in this idea, Madison knew that with these men being ambitious, the government also had to be ambitious. After this idea, he knew that not just one person could run the government but

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In his Defense of the American System, Henry Clay discussed the importance of the American System to the success and prosperity of the people and the government. He justified his belief by comparing two periods in American history in which the nation experienced depression and stagnation versus prosperity. The first discussed a period of seven years right before the passing of the tariff of 1824, which he portrayed as a time of "the most widespread dismay and desolation" in which the people "were then oppressed and borne down by an enormous load of debt (Norton Mix, 82). " The latter examined the period of

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During Madison’s presidency he mainly focused on The War of 1812 more than anything else. Madison had the nickname “Father of The Constitution” for a reason, and that reason is that he wanted all people in the United States to have equal rights shared between everyone. He did most of his things to make everyone equal before he became president, but while he was president he tried his hardest to make everyone in the United States

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“It has been my invariable rule to do all for the Union, if any man wants the key of my heart, let him take the key of the Union, and that is the key to my heart. . . .” -Henry Clay. An American politician by the name of Henry Clay was an active member to Congress for the majority of his life. Many historical events such as The Missouri Compromise of 1820, Tariff of 1816, the American System, and The Compromise of 1850 were constructed and resolved with Henry Clay as the primary source. His intentions for the many years of his political years were not for the popularity of his success, but more for his love of the Union.

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