His Excellency: George Washington

As Washington assumes the presidency, with John Adams as his vice president, two issues haunt the national political debate: monarchism and slavery. Many observers are suspicious that Washington is steering the United States toward a monarchical form of government—an accusation that grows especially strong during his second term. Washington meets these criticisms by delegating executive power to his cabinet in key areas, and by striking a “proper middle note between courtly formality and republican simplicity” (193) in social functions. Throughout, Washington maintains a dignified aloofness and tries to “[hover] above the political fray” (194). He visits all the states of the Union and is acclaimed as a focus of unity for the new nation, “the man who unites all hearts” (197).

The issue of slavery comes before Congress in 1790 when two Quaker petitions, one signed by Benjamin Franklin, call for the immediate end of the slave trade and gradual abolition of slavery itself (201). Washington concurs with Franklin’s desire to end slavery, but he weighs this against the need for national unity and for executive restraint. The House votes to “take slavery off the national agenda” (202) until 1808, and to declare the abolition of slavery a state rather than federal issue.