American History Says it’s Okay to Say Goodbye to a Political Party

The Federalist Party was conservative, urban/banking/corporate, oddly religious, with ties to the Congregational church in New England, the first political party in the USA, and dominant until Jefferson defeated the divisive John Adams in the election of 1800. The Federalists failed to attract new talent after Adams’ and Hamilton’s feud, departure, and death. Having lost Congress and the executive branch, the party shrank into the judiciary under Federalist Chief Justice John Marshall. Lame Duck Federalists attempted to fight from that yet-to-be-fully-defined stronghold passing the Judiciary Act of 1801 to expand the federal courts and keep the justices in DC rather than riding the circuits. <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/american-political-science-review/article/abs/repeal-of-the-judiciary-act-of-1801/B7F3F87CE7EE3E0AD0ACF6F8B60CC2F3" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">The incoming Jeffersonians pulled together a repeal of the Judiciary Act</a>, and Marshall ultimately concerned himself with the Court's power more than the party’s power. See Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137 (1803). <a href="https://ellenbethgill.medium.com/american-history-says-its-okay-to-say-goodbye-to-a-political-party-6721fcf1f72c">Website</a>