Alexander Hamilton: Washington’s Right-Hand Man & Stable Policymaker w/ Stephen Knott

0:00 Hamilton’s promotion of the National Bank, which President Washington, of course, endorses and signs into law. These are all designed to again sort of spark that American entrepreneurial spirit to make it clear to investors both at home and abroad that we are a

0:20 worthy bet. Uh that we can be a worthy predator. And that is going to again spark this entrepreneurial spirit. I give Hamilton a lot of credit as sort of the father of American capitalism, and I know that’s part of the reason he’s a controversial figure in the minds of many. Uh but in my view, that was one of

0:43 his strokes of genius that he shares with with President Washington. Hi, this is Tony Williams, senior fellow at the Bill of Rights Institute, and we’re pleased to bring you another episode of Scholar Talks. For this episode, we’re honored to have on scholar Stephen Knott, who is going to

1:03 discuss Alexander Hamilton as part of our American Founders series. Now, the guiding question for this series is what core contribution did this founder make to liberty and constitutional self-governance? And Stephen Knott is recently retired as a professional of national security at

1:25 the Naval War College, and hopefully, uh selfishly on my part, hopefully he’s going to be writing a lots more books. Uh he is the author of 10 books already, including Washington and Hamilton, The Alliance That Forged America. Uh we actually co-authored that one. Uh and the uh Alexander Hamilton and the

1:46 Persistence of Myth with University Press of Kansas. And he recently published a new book, Coming to Terms with John F. Kennedy. Uh Uh, his website is stevenfknott.com. Steve, uh, you’re an old friend of VRI and of mine, and I want to thank you for joining us. Well, thank you for having me, Tony.

2:07 It’s always a pleasure to speak with you and to, uh, reignite a friendship that goes back quite a few years at this point. Great, great. And and I’ll tell you, I can’t think of a better topic to talk about uh uh than than Alexander Hamilton, right? Uh, still perennially important and, uh, still, uh, a very, uh, popular founder,

2:29 if you will, because of the musical and just the the general interest in it. Um, so, you know, it seems pretty common knowledge to me, uh, that Alexander Hamilton had an extremely difficult, uh, childhood. Uh, people know that he was a child prodigy, uh, and that he came to America and

2:51 became what you might call an immigrant success story. Uh, and I think all of that’s pretty well documented, but but what’s really always struck me about Hamilton is that he came to the country as a young man. He was a college student, but he really embraced his American ideals, his American principles, and while he could have remained a college student,

3:14 he put his life on the line. He went to war for not only the his new adopted country, but really, I think, for the the cause of liberty and and for those ideals. Uh, do you agree with that? I do agree, Tony, and I’m glad you’re starting with this question because I do think there’s a tendency at times,

3:35 uh, to dismiss, perhaps, or downplay Hamilton’s commitment, uh, to the Enlightenment principles of the American Revolution. Um, and I think that’s a mistake, and particularly if you look at the younger Hamilton’s writings, especially uh I believe 20-year-old Alexander Hamilton

3:57 when he writes The Farmer Refuted in 1775, uh there’s some really almost poetic um phrases in that particular piece of writing where Hamilton sounds almost Jeffersonian in terms of his commitment to the notion that uh liberty is is

4:18 essentially a a god-given right granted to all human beings. If you’ll allow me just a second, the favorite passage I have from The Farmer Refuted uh from Hamilton is the sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for amongst old parchments or musty records. They are written as with a sunbeam in

4:40 the whole volume of human nature by the hand of the divinity itself and can never be erased or obscured by mortal power. I mean, that is a classic statement that again, I think Thomas Jefferson and many other Enlightenment era figures would be fully in accord with. Hamilton believed that. Hamilton, as you said, will put his life on the

5:02 line for those principles. So again, thank you for starting with that question because I do believe, as I said, there’s a tendency to perhaps overlook that aspect of Hamilton’s thinking, focus on his attempts to build this nation as a military and economic power, which is true. Those were top

5:23 priorities of his, but he was committed to the notion of the United States being a beacon of liberty. All right, that’s a great quote. Uh and and I I’ll put those Lockean sentiments uh beautifully expressed up against Jefferson any day of the week, right? They’re That’s a a great quote.

5:43 So uh Hamilton, as we discussed at length in in Washington and Hamilton, um really becomes Washington’s right-hand man during the war. Uh and and so how does How does this take place? How does this relation How is this relationship forged in war in the in the American Revolution? So Hamilton first,

6:05 um is seen by General Washington during the Battle of Long Island, which is those of you who know your American history know that that was uh a very close call in terms of the glorious cause. The Washington’s entire army could have well been captured at that Battle of Long Island a mere, you know, 2 months or so

6:27 after the issuance of the Declaration of Independence, which probably would have meant an end to the American drive for independence. Hamilton distinguishes himself during that cam- campaign, uh by leading his artillery company that he has raised and trained uh to provide sort of

6:48 a flyer or cover for Washington’s army as it retreats from New York City and retre- retreats into the New Jersey countryside. At some point during that August September 1776 period, Washington is either told about Hamilton’s performance either by General Nathaniel

7:08 Greene or by General Hugh Knox, who was Washington’s artillery commander, or perhaps others have have suggested Washington actually viewed Hamilton in action. But regardless, due to his performance there at the Battle of Long Island, he is brought to General Washington’s attention and on March 1st,

7:29 1777, he is made a member Hamilton is made a member of Washington’s staff, or as Washington liked to refer to him his that them his family. Right. And and and really so so what’s uh Hamilton’s uh role uh as that staff

7:49 officer? I I believe we call it sort of he was the the pen Washington’s pen during the war. And and really sort of learns a lot about uh politics and civil military relations writing to Congress and the states and and and so forth. So so what what role exactly is he playing there? You know, he plays I think a somewhat

8:10 indispensable role. I mean, there was a whole team of these young staff officers, but arguably I would make the case that Hamilton is perhaps the most important from the period from 1777 to 1781. And uh he almost has this ability, it seems, to sort of divine what Washington

8:31 is thinking. Uh the two of them are very much on, to use a modern expression, the same wavelength. Um and uh Hamilton has this great ability to put Washington’s thoughts on paper, as you mentioned. And uh and also has a remarkable work ethic. Uh the guy seemed capable of working

8:52 around the clock 24/7 at times, occasionally I think working himself into exhaustion. Uh but he earns the respect of General Washington for that um for those work habits. And I should add, Tony, Hamilton was fluent in French. And of course, the alliance with France was quite important. Hamilton will become a

9:14 fairly close friend of General Lafayette and other members of the French military delegation that’s helping the glorious cause. And that’s a critical critical aspect as well, his ability to speak and write French fluently. Mhm. Right. Why you talked about Washington’s family and and this this uh

9:35 group of this close-knit sort of officer corps. Um you know, they What What How does that shape uh America afterwards, right? I’m thinking a couple things here. One is as you mentioned, Washington sort of recognized that that men should rise through merit, right? Rather than

9:56 aristocracy or buying commissions and so forth in the army. Uh and as well as this sort of nascent nationalism and this this continental broad outlook beyond just the the local government or or states. That that Those allegiances start to shift. Yeah, excellent point. I think for both

10:18 Washington and Hamilton being at the the in the crucible of this this conflict, which at any point could have could have gone the other direction. It is something of a miracle that the American forces actually managed to win and to beat the world’s greatest superpower. But both of those men and both all of those men who were who were around

10:38 Washington’s inner circle, including people like John Marshall, the future Chief Justice, develop, as you said, a kind of nationalist outlook. They sort of overcome perhaps their parochial inclinations and begin to consider themselves as truly continental, as truly Americans, rather

10:59 than as Virginians or New Yorkers or whatever. And they literally travel the length of this land. It was obviously this thin strip of land on the Atlantic coast, but they travel the length of it far more than their fellow Americans at that time. And they do develop this sense of American identity, which is

11:20 forged in this wartime experience. Now, look, I’ve never served in war. I’ve never experienced combat. I do teach at a military institution. And I’m told by those who have fought in combat that it is a bonding experience unlike any other. And I think for Washington and

11:41 for Hamilton, both of whom came from very different backgrounds, but put their lives on the line for this cause, that cause becomes the creation of a new nation and the institutions necessary to sustain this new nation. And the state-based Articles of Confederation

12:02 were simply seen as wanting, as lacking the kind of energy that both Washington and Hamilton come to believe is necessary to sustain this newly independent nation. Right. Yeah, really important points and really a perfect segue actually into my my next question. You know, during the 1780s, our Hamilton

12:24 stands at the vanguard of this this nationalist group, this Continental group, who really wants to have a stronger constitutional order. And he goes to the Annapolis Convention, of course, he attends the Constitutional Convention, he’s really important at the New York Ratifying Convention, and of course, perhaps most notably as as

12:44 co-author of the Federalist Papers. So, so what were his arguments in the midst of all these conventions and and particularly in the Federalist in terms of arguing for a stronger national union, stronger national government. And really in particular, which is of course a a specialty of yours, you know, that

13:04 that stronger, more energetic executive. So, I think for Hamilton, and perhaps sometimes scholars overlook this, because he and Washington and so many others had put their lives, their sacred honor on the line in the service of this cause,

13:25 they came to conclude in the 1780s that while we had won the war and defeated this world superpower, we really were in danger of losing the peace. And Washington and Hamilton and James Madison and others uh come to believe that the articles of confederation is simply not up to the

13:46 task of governing this newly independent nation. And so all of Hamilton’s efforts during this time frame uh to try to convince his fellow citizens that a more energetic, a more centralized, if you will, uh government is necessary to secure the United States from foreign attack, but also to secure the United

14:08 States from potential domestic insurrections. And of course it’s events like Shay’s Rebellion. Whether they embellished Shay’s Rebellion or not, we could get into that. Uh but it was a signal to these nationalists that something was deeply wrong with the articles, that the national government,

14:30 if you could even call it that, lacked the ability to suppress those types of uprisings. And so all of Hamilton’s efforts are designed to uh convince his fellow citizens we need to move away from the articles, create a more energetic government that will protect the nation’s security, that will

14:50 foster trade between the states. There’d been a number of conflicts between the states, sort of trade disputes, border disputes. Uh and also foster commerce with with the rest of the world. Hamilton had a vision of the United States being a player on the world scene, but that was not going to happen

15:10 under an Articles of Confederation style government. Right. And you know, just as a follow-up, you know, it Hamilton’s really interesting because whereas the anti-federalists are arguing that the the national government, a strong executive, that these have all traditionally been threats to liberty and and are the main threat to liberty. Hamilton actually thought weakness was

15:32 the main threat to liberty because if you collapse, if if we become separate confederacies, if we’re sort of a this kind of a play thing of all these European empires, that’s where the greatest threat to liberty and and self-government is. Well well put, Tony, and excellent point. I mean, part of Hamilton’s argument

15:53 before a more energetic national government and an energetic presidency, back to your previous question, was that the president’s responsibility to take care of that the laws be faithfully executed would allow for the rise of a kind of commercial spirit in the United States, a kind of entrepreneurship, if if you

16:15 will, and that is only possible in a system where there is the rule of law in place, that people know that certain contracts are going to be obeyed, that the rules and the parameters of the game are set, and that will allow you to grow. And so, the president’s responsibility, in part, uh shared with

16:36 the other branches as well, of course, uh to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, uh this was missing under the articles, and this was holding the United States back from realizing not only a kind of commercial success, but also from unleashing the sort of entrepreneurial

16:57 spirit uh possessed by individuals within that system. Right. Great uh uh great points. And during the 1790s, of course, he’s able to implement uh a lot of this uh in the government in in the Washington administration. He is, of course, the the Treasury Secretary, uh a main policy maker, continues to be

17:19 Washington’s right-hand man. Perhaps some have described him as a almost a prime minister of sorts, uh, and and so Hamilton helps to establish the right framework for the nation, uh, in terms of finances, national security, foreign policy, domestic policy. I know there’s a lot there, but how does he promote that constitutionalism, that

17:41 rule of law, that stability that the new nation needs? In part, I would say, Tony, uh, in terms of promoting the rule of law, both he and President Washington, uh, came to the conclusion in 1793-94 during the so-called Whiskey Rebellion that this was a real test of the rule of

18:03 law. Uh, you had a armed, uh, resistance, uh, primarily in western Pennsylvania in terms of, uh, uh, resisting a federal excise tax that had been passed by Congress, signed into law by the president. Uh, I understand the complaints of the farmers in these remote areas on the frontier, uh, but

18:24 when the resistance took a violent turn, both Hamilton and Washington came became convinced that if we truly were going to be a nation of laws, that if we were truly were going to abide by the rule of law, you know, it was the responsibility of the federal government, ultimately, to enforce that tax. And I think they

18:45 did so through a mixture both firmness, marching a 12 to 14,000 man force into western Pennsylvania, but then ultimately President Washington will pardon the ringleaders of the Whiskey Rebellion. So, that was one particular event where they sort of lay down a marker and say, "We are going to be a

19:05 government based on the rule of law. Mob action will never be acceptable." The other thing I should add, Tony, is all of Hamilton’s economic programs as Treasury Secretary, whether it was the assumption of the debts left over from the American Revolution, the federal government absorbs all these state debts

19:26 and the debts of the Articles of Confederation, and also Hamilton’s promotion of the National Bank, which President Washington, of course, endorses and signs into law. These are all designed to, again, sort of spark that American entrepreneurial spirit, to make it clear to investors, both at home

19:49 and abroad, that we are a worthy bet, that we can be a worthy predator. And that is going to, again, spark this entrepreneurial spirit. I give Hamilton a lot of credit as sort of the father of American capitalism, and I know that’s part of the reason he’s a controversial

20:10 figure in the minds of many, but in my view, that was one of his strokes of genius that he shares with with President Washington. All right. And something we talked a lot about in the book is that they face challenges, right? And those challenges primarily come from the Jeffersonians, Thomas Jefferson himself, James Madison. So, how do they challenge

20:32 Hamilton’s order? And here’s a question I think I know the answer to. Who Who wins? Well, Thomas Jefferson, who of course is in President Washington’s cabinet as Secretary of State, does fairly quickly begin to form the opposition to the administration’s initiatives, primarily

20:54 Hamilton’s initiatives. But Jefferson believes that Hamilton is too Excuse me, bewitched by the British example. And uh sort of betraying the spirit of 1776 by proposing things like a Bank of the United States modeled somewhat on the

21:15 British Bank. Uh by proposing the assumption of the state debts. That is going to enhance the power of the central government. Jefferson is much more of a states rights believer. And so a number of these steps both in the domestic sphere and in the foreign foreign policy sphere, the

21:36 neutrality proclamation, the Jay Treaty, are seen as very pro-British steps. Uh Jefferson is going to become the leader of the opposition while he is still serving in Washington’s cabinet, which in my view is somewhat disturbing. Um and eventually I think recruits James

21:57 Madison as well. And uh this is this is the beginning of the two-party system in the United States. Mhm. Yeah, great points. Um so, my final question, uh you know, we have a a lifetime of public service from sort of a a teenager uh immigrant to this country right up

22:18 through his uh untimely and and and early tragic death, what are some of the most important ways that Hamilton advances liberty and self-governance? Well, I think Tony ultimately in the end his his entire public service is devoted to to liberty, but it’s it’s

22:39 an ordered liberty. It’s it’s a type of liberty that also understands the importance of stability, of a kind of permanence in terms of the law, and also in terms of your institutions. Uh and again, this is what makes him a somewhat controversial figure. He is willing to stand up

23:01 uh for for instance the rights of the Tory president of of King’s College, Myles Cooper, who was about to be lynched by a revolutionary mob, I think in 1775 or so. Hamilton delivers a speech on the steps of Myles Cooper’s home urging the mob not to betray the

23:22 ideals of the revolution, not to to uh uh betray a revolution based on enlightenment principles that could easily decay or degrade into a kind of mob rule. And by doing so, he allows Myles Cooper to escape out the back. I’ve often thought of of the president’s house. I’ve often thought thought that

23:43 that speech on the steps of Myles Cooper’s house symbolized all of Alexander Hamilton’s public service. Yes, he’s a believer in liberty. Yes, he’s a believer in the Republican form of government here in the United States. But again, it’s going to be an ordered liberty. It’s going to be a liberty that rejects mob rule. It’s going to be a

24:04 liberty, I think, that rejects the more perhaps extreme notions of somebody like a Thomas Paine who was such a zealot for the rights of man that I think he’s blinded at times by the uh fact that man is a somewhat sinful uh creature, to say the least. Right. Uh great. Uh

24:26 Steve Knott, as always, uh we’ve done several of these interviews, but uh I want to thank you very much for for talking about one of our favorite topics, Alexander Hamilton. Thank you, Tony. It’s always a pleasure to be with you. Great. Uh and thank you for joining us all in this episode of Scholar Talks. Please check out our other interviews in this series on the founders including

24:47 our common friend Jeff Morrison on Washington, Jay Cost on Madison, Jonathan Den Hartog on John Jay, Thomas Kidd on Jefferson, uh and Mark Hall on Roger Sherman. That is quite a lineup, by the way. Check out my previous Scholar Talk interviews with Steve and

25:07 the Lost Soul of the American Presidency, and check out his book Coming to Terms with John F. Kennedy. Thank you.