More on Hamilton and Burr

Sandy Levinson

An interesting side discussion has suggested that Aaron Burr really wasn't so bad as Hamilton suggested in the letters that I quoted (and which, incidentally, were intended to be circulated and thus made known to the relevant publics).  Unlike Donald Trump, for example, he had served his country honorably during the Revolution.  Burr was also anti-slavery.

All of that is interesting, and it is possible that Hamilton was being unfair to Burr.  But, in some sense, that is beside the point.  There can be no doubt whatsoever about two things:  First, Hamilton was acting in terms of what he thought was the public interest.  This was not Henry Clay throwing his support to Adams in return for becoming Secretary of State.  Hamilton obviously never became part of the Jefferson Administration.  One should take him at his word that he was behaving on completely honorable grounds.  The only way that party entered into his calculations was his altogether acute observation that the Federalists would become absolutely liable for a Burr presidency (and for whatever he did) in a way that would not be true if Jefferson became president and they continued to oppose his policies.  Second, there is no reason whatsoever to doubt the sincerity of Hamilton's denunciations of Burr.  Even if we decide was Hamilton was the victim of "Burr derangement syndrome," that doesn't affect at all the fact that he genuinely believed Burr to be a menace to the transcendent goal of establishing a truly "Republican Form of Government" in the United States.  (One might wonder if Burr's post-duel and vice-presidential career vindicated his critics, as was the arguably true with regard to Robert Bork following the rejection of his appointment to the Supreme Court.) 

Hamilton had learned what honor meant from George Washington:  One of the most remarkable features of "Hamilton" is the Washington's Farewell Address, which I never imagined would bring tears to my eyes, but it does inasmuch as it truly captures what made Washington such a truly great republican leader by rejecting the notion of the "indispensable man." 

The overall point is that Alexander Hamilton provided an inspiring model of what it means to be a truly public-regarding citizen.  Paul Ryan could do much worse than to immerse himself in the work both of Pope Francis and Alexander Hamilton if he wishes to present himself as a man we should have any respect for.  Even if one believes that Hamilton ignored some of Burr's merits, that still doesn't entail, of course, believing that we would have been better off with Burr than with Jefferson as president.  (There is also the possibility that the imposition of Burr by Federalists would have led to civil war given the threat of Pennsylvania's and Virginia's governors to call out their militias and march on Washington should the Federalists in effect steal the election.)

It is interesting to compare the Goldwater election with this one.  Many Republicans refused to support Goldwater, but the rationale was, as I recall, almost entirely on policy grounds.  He had, after all, voted against the Civil Right Act of 1964 and seemed dangerously "extremist" to many.  With very few exceptions, he was not denounced as a dangerously power-hungry narcissist  who has no consistent commitments other than xenophobia.  JFK in fact liked Goldwater and was apparently looking forward to flying around the country to debate with him should he get the nomination.  Nor, incidentally, do I recall that Goldwater spent much time attacking the personal character (or physical characteristics) of his adversaries. 





Posted 12:06 PM by Sandy Levinson [link]