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“Gorge Washington’s Farewell Address”

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“Gorge Washington’s Farewell Address”

“Gorge Washington’s Farewell Address” is a drafted letter by the United States' former

American President. He drafted the letter addressing his friends and fellow citizens after serving

as the U.S president for twenty years. The letter was written near the end of his second term in

office before he retired to his home located in Mount Vernon in Virginia. In his letter, George

Washington declared that he was not going to run for the presidency. This paper precisely and

concisely covers the premier part of the contents of the document. Some of the critical issues that

this paper focuses on are the Unity of sectionalism, the United States constitution and political

factions, foreign trade and free trade, and the balance and separation of powers in the U.S

government. Notably, George Washington was profoundly devoted to addressing most of the

domestic issues the country was facing then, warning citizens about the potential rise of political

parties as well as sectionalism, which he described as threats to national Unity. In efforts to

expand the country's borders in 1817, the U.S wanted to sign an agreement with Britain with

Spain; however, the relationship with Spain was tense since the two countries disagreed on the

borders of the Louisiana Purchase and the Ownership of West Florida. Sectionalism created a

bad relationship that led to conflicts with foreign nations, just like it was said in George

Washington’s Farewell.

Concerning “Unity and Sectionalism, Washington expressed his understanding of

republicanism. He affirmed popular government and warned about the potential threats of the

“Republican Liberty. “ He warned the American people to question and seeks answers from the

ulterior plans of any individual or cohort that argues that the land in the United States borders is

too vast to be governed as a republic. This argument made multiple individuals call on people to

allow the large republic of the U.S to work before they can jump to conclusions that it was not
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possible (Lumen Editors, 2011). In his letter, Washington gives strong warnings on the possible

dangers that may come up with sectionalism, alleging that sectionalism's true intentions were to

establish distrust and rivalry between people and different regions to obtain power and take

control of the U.S government.

Concerning the “constitution and political factions,” Washington openly supports the

then new constitutional government. He also urged the people to change the constitution

whenever they felt like it was not meeting their needs but emphasizes that the changes should be

made only through constitutional amendments. Washington warns against violent takeovers of

the government, which he attests and persuades individuals to avoid such approaches at all costs.

Furthermore, he warns the people of America about groups that would have intentions to

overthrow the government by striving to pass constitutional amendments that would weaken the

U.S government to the point that the government would become weak to defend itself from the

emerging political factions. The government would not be able to enforce the laws it makes and

be unable to protect the American people’s rights and property. However, it is currently hard to

imagine the contemporary U.S government without the two political parties; the Democrats and

the Republicans (PRUITT, 2019). Washington’s point about the rivalry of political parties has

been witnessed to date since the times of the two founders of the parties Jefferson and Hamilton.

After quitting the cabinet of Washington, the two bitterly attacked each other over their opinions.

About political parties, Washington persuades and advises people about the dangers that

would sectionalism might probe. He urged that political parties would weaken the government

since individuals who come up with the political parties have ill motives. Political parties are like

enemies of the government that seek power over their counterparts, and also they seek revenge

on their political rivalries. The political parties may distract the government from doing its duties
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and establish unfounded forms of jealousy among people and different regions. This jealousy and

hatred that develops among people may lead to riots and protests among people, which would

also offer foreign nations access to the government. Consequently, the foreign nations could

impose their will on the country.

Finally, "about the balance and separation of powers," Washington advises that the

people should check on the constitution to make sure that there is a balance and separation of

powers among individuals since it is essential in preventing one person or a particular group

from seizing full control of the country. Suppose the people perceive that there is a need to

modify the powers granted to the executive through the constitution; Washington advises that

they should do that through constitutional amendments and not through force and violence. In

contemporary governance, the government is still divided into three branches; Executive,

Legislature, and judiciary to safeguard against tyranny as it was framed initially by the framers

of the constitution. Much as the system thwarts the public will and weakens the government's

process, United States Citizens have for years rallied to the defense of the original premise of the

framers of the current constitution (Leslie et al., 2016). There have been issues about the change

of powers from the judiciary to the executive and vice versa, which attracted substantial

reactions both from the public and political parties.

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References

Leslie et al. (2016). Constitutional Issues - Separation of Powers. Educator Resources.

Lumen Editors. (2011). The History of Political Parties. Lumen.com.

PRUITT, S. (2019). The Founding Fathers Feared Political Factions Would Tear the Nation

Apart. History Stories.