ABSTRACT
The Constitution drafted in Philadelphia required ratification by elected conventions in nine states. The administration of George Washington managed to remain above party politics and sectionalism. Both Hamilton and Jefferson served in Washington's cabinet. Several defendants charged under the Alien and Sedition Acts pleaded that the acts were unconstitutional under the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech and of the press. Revisionist historiography, for the most part, has not gainsaid the genius of the Chief Justice or the lasting achievements of his Court. Because the mandamus decision has been the focal point of debate over the Court's rise to power, historical evaluations of it have varied sharply. The clash between the President and the Chief Justice could not obscure the fact that the Court and the Republicans had come to share enough ground for a rapprochement. Neither the states, nor the President, nor the Congress surrendered its right to interpret the Constitution and all continued to influence constitutional law.
