Reviews for Adams vs. Jefferson : the tumultuous election of 1800
Publishers Weekly
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Veteran historian Ferling's account of one of America's most extraordinary political dramas lays bare the historically pugilist nature of American presidential politics. In 1800 the nation was struggling to its feet amidst an array of threats from foreign governments and a host of constitutional struggles. Against this backdrop, President John Adams, an elite, strong-willed Federalist, set to square off against his vice president, Thomas Jefferson, a populist Republican. The campaign was brutal. Republicans assailed the Federalists as scare-mongers. Federalists attacked Republicans as godless. But it was a constitutional quirk that nearly collapsed the nascent United States. Adams was eliminated, but Jefferson and his vice-presidential running mate, Aaron Burr, tied in the Electoral College with 73 votes, throwing the decision into the House of Representatives. That left the Federalist-dominated House to decide between two despised Republicans for president. After 36 votes, a political deal finally gave Jefferson the presidency, ending a standoff that had the nation on the brink of collapse. Although his account is dense at times, Ferling richly presents the twists and turns of the election, as well as a vivid portrait of a struggling new nation and the bruising political battles of our now revered founding fathers, including the major roles played by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. In what has already proven to be a vicious 2004 campaign, readers will take some comfort in knowing that the vagaries of the political process, although no doubt exacerbated today by mass media, have changed little in over 200 years. Of even greater comfort, and Ferling's ultimate triumph, is showing that, historically, when faced with dire circumstances at home and abroad, American democracy has pulled through. B&w illus., maps. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
For those still pondering the presidential election of 2000, and looking that of 2004 in the eye, comes this knotty tale from the days of the Founders. "Politicians then, as now, were driven by personal ambition," writes Revolutionary-era historian Ferling (Setting the World Ablaze, 2000, etc.). "They used the same tactics as today, sometimes taking the high road, but often traveling the low road, which led them to ridicule and even smear their foes, to search for scandal in the behavior of their adversaries, and to play on raw emotions." In 1800, for instance, Federalists branded Republican candidate Thomas Jefferson "a howling atheist," while Republicans questioned Federalist candidate John Adams's war record; so hot did the battle grow that propagandists even turned on their own candidates, as did Alexander Hamilton when, for reasons that are still murky, he published a vicious attack on Adams, "upon whom he heaped all the blame for the erosion of his political fortunes." Hamilton may have had reason to be ticked off, for the trusted aide of George Washington and Revolutionary War hero found no place on the Federalist ticket, pushed aside in favor of the democracy-loathing Charles Pinckney, of whom "no one ever claimed that his was a charismatic persona." Jefferson and fellow Republican Aaron Burr (who, Virginia Republicans divined, "was not passionately committed to any political principle") handily won the electoral race against Jefferson's one-time friend Adams (they broke, Ferling writes, over a misinterpreted inscription in a copy of The Rights of Man). But Jefferson had also to win in Congress, where the race was much closer. Ferling argues that he did so by brokering a deal with the Federalists, an arrangement that would explain why, "despite having fought against the Hamiltonian system for nearly a decade, Jefferson acquiesced to it once in office" and made other concessions to his political enemies. Whereas in Jefferson's Second Revolution (see above), Susan Dunn takes a benign view of whatever the arrangement amounted to, Ferling is clearly uncomfortable with the back-room dealing. Otherwise, the two authors complement each other nicely. A well-written look at the enigmatic politics and personalities of the early Republic. Copyright ŠKirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Choice
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Historian Ferling (State Univ. of West Georgia; Setting the World Ablaze, CH, Jan'01, 38-2909; A Leap in the Dark, CH, Feb'04, 41-3627) continues his study of early US political development with this account of the controversial election of 1800, which he maintains introduced egalitarian democracy to a conservative centralized government. After offering sketches of the major players--Adams, C. C. Pinckney, Hamilton, Jefferson, Burr, and Madison--Ferling describes the tumultuous and polarizing political atmosphere of the 1790s. By 1800, Adams's popularity had waned; Republicans had successfully portrayed Federalists as monarchial Anglophiles, giving Jefferson a chance to restore the principles of the Revolution. And while both sides used the press to vilify their opponents during this rancorous and negative campaign, Hamilton delivered the most devastating blow by publicly attacking Adams in a 54-page pamphlet. Jefferson and Burr subsequently tied in the electoral vote, throwing the contest into the House of Representatives and almost prompting a civil war. After dozens of ballots, a secret deal changed a single vote, ultimately giving the election to Jefferson. The Revolution of 1800, as Jefferson referred to the election, dramatically altered the political direction for the country and, according to Ferling, created a more egalitarian nation. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries. G. A. Smith Texas Christian University
Library Journal
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Ferling (history, Univ. of West Georgia; John Adams: A Life) presents a lively and reliable account of Thomas Jefferson's election as President in 1800, a fiery period in American history. Readers who assume that national politics in the 1990s was the dirtiest ever or that the election of 2000 was the most controversial will be struck to learn that political rivalries in the 1790s were even dirtier. In marked contrast to Susan Dunn (Jefferson's Second Revolution: The Election Crisis of 1800 and the Triumph of Republicanism), who sees Jefferson's election as a victory for the political process and the peaceful transfer of power from one party to another, Ferling concludes that Jefferson's election resulted from a secret deal with Federalists. This book does not cover any new ground, but general readers will find it exciting, clear, and instructive. Recommended for all public libraries.-T.J. Schaeper, St. Bonaventure Univ., NY (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
