VOA Special English

Welcome to THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English.

George Washington became America's first president in seventeen eighty-nine. He had commanded the forces of the American colonies in their successful rebellion against Britain. Washington was elected without opposition. But American politics were about to change. This week in our series, Frank Oliver and Ray Freeman describe the beginnings of the two-party political system in the United States.

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VOICE TWO:


George Washington
George Washington did not belong to a political party. There were no political parties in America at that time. This does not mean all Americans held the same political beliefs. They did not. But there were no established organizations that offered candidates for elections.

Two such organizations began to take shape during President Washington's first administration. One was called the Federalists. Its leader was Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton. The other was called the Republicans. Its leader was Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson. Each group represented the political beliefs of its leader.

VOICE ONE:

Hamilton and the Federalists wanted a strong national government with a powerful president and courts. They supported policies that helped bankers and wealthy businessmen. They urged close economic and diplomatic ties with Britain. They did not like democracy, which they described as mob rule.

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