The Most Famous Founding Father You’ve Never Heard of Was Hamilton's Arch-Nemesis and a Deficit Hawk

The Most Famous Founding Father You’ve Never Heard of Was Hamilton's Arch-Nemesis and a Deficit Hawk

Alexander Hamilton had a nemesis… and it was not Aaron Burr. After Hamilton enacted a wide-scale spending program to build up America's military and infrastructure, and thus send it into debt, newly-elected President Thomas Jefferson chose a Secretary of the Treasury to dismantle his system—Albert Gallatin.

Considered a “foreigner, a tax rebel, and a dangerously clever man,” the Geneva-born Gallatin was despised by Hamilton and the Federalists. During their political careers, these two economic masterminds were locked in a battle to surmount the other’s financial system for the new nation.

During his twelve years as Secretary of the Treasury, Gallatin overcame his predecessor by
-- Repaying half of the national debt
-- Containing the federal government by restraining its fiscal power
-- Abolishing internal taxes in peacetime
-- Slashing spending

Today I'm talking with Gregory May, author of the new book Jefferson’s Treasure: How Albert Gallatin Saved the New Nation from Debt.

We discuss Gallatin’s rise to power, his tumultuous years at the Treasury, and his enduring influence on American fiscal policy.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episoder(1075)

The Confederate States of America, An Alternate History: 1865-2020

The Confederate States of America, An Alternate History: 1865-2020

Civil War historians have asked if the South could have won the Civil War (or at least fought to a stalemate) since 1866. If they would have won, then what then? What would a divided states of America...

4 Feb 202051min

An Admiral's List of the 10 Greatest Admirals in History

An Admiral's List of the 10 Greatest Admirals in History

Today's episode features a special guest, James Stavridis, a four-star U.S. Navy Admiral and former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO. He joins us to discuss the ten greatest admirals in history and lo...

30 Jan 202030min

Pearl Harbor May Have Been Avoided If a Lone US Diplomat Had Gotten His Way

Pearl Harbor May Have Been Avoided If a Lone US Diplomat Had Gotten His Way

Could one American diplomat have prevented the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor? The answer might be yes. America’s ambassador to Japan in 1941, Joseph Grew, certainly thought so. He saw the writing on...

28 Jan 202044min

How 20K Marines Held Out Against 300K Chinese Soldiers At The Chosin Reservoir, The Korean War's Greatest Battle

How 20K Marines Held Out Against 300K Chinese Soldiers At The Chosin Reservoir, The Korean War's Greatest Battle

On October 15, 1950, General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of UN troops in Korea, convinced President Harry Truman that the Communist forces of Kim Il-sung would be utterly defeated by Thanksgi...

23 Jan 202056min

Dragons Never Existed. So Why Are They Found in Absolutely Every Ancient Folklore?

Dragons Never Existed. So Why Are They Found in Absolutely Every Ancient Folklore?

You don't have to read the ancient folklore of China, Sumeria, or anywhere else long before you encounter a dragon. Sometimes they guard treasure. Sometimes they kidnap local maidens. Sometimes they a...

21 Jan 202041min

The Crusades, From Both Arab and European Perspectives

The Crusades, From Both Arab and European Perspectives

For more than one thousand years, Christians and Muslims lived side by side, sometimes at peace and sometimes at war. When Christian armies seized Jerusalem in 1099, they began the most notorious peri...

16 Jan 202052min

How the Nazi Ministry of Propaganda Radicalized Germany

How the Nazi Ministry of Propaganda Radicalized Germany

Once the Nazi Party took power in Germany, they managed to end democracy and turned the nation into a one-party dictatorship, launching an endless propaganda campaign to mobilize the public for war. J...

14 Jan 202040min

Star Spangled Scandal: The Antebellum Murder Trial that Changed America

Star Spangled Scandal: The Antebellum Murder Trial that Changed America

Two years before the Civil War, Congressman Daniel Sickles and his lovely wife Teresa were popular fixtures in Washington, D.C. society. Their house sat on Lafayette Square across from White House gro...

9 Jan 202048min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
konspirasjonspodden
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
wolfgang-wee-uncut
grenselos
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
min-barneoppdragelse
synnve-og-vanessa
alt-fortalt
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
rss-dannet-uten-piano
fladseth
198-land-med-einar-trnquist
rss-lilli-isabelle
opptur-med-annette-og-ingeborg