Adams, John Quincy (Administration)

THE ADMINISTRATION OF John Quincy Adams (1825–29) failed to achieve its ambitious agenda, yet was the first to seek to address urban poverty as one of the asserted benefits of nationally instituted “internal improvements.” The hardworking Adams (1767–1848) entered the White House in 1825 with the attributes of a brilliant and creative mind and unparalleled diplomatic experience, gained as an ambassador and secretary of state. However, his aloofness played into the hands of his enemies in an era when the “common touch” in politics was of increasing value.

From the beginning, Adams's administration was irreparably damaged by the bitter presidential campaign of 1824, in which Adams lost the popular and the electoral vote to Andrew Jackson, and only secured the presidency when the election was thrown into the House of Representatives after no candidate received a majority in the Electoral College. Soon thereafter, Jackson and his supporters started their campaign to win the White House in 1828, while alleging a “corrupt bargain” between Adams and House Speaker Henry Clay after Adams named Clay his secretary of state. Nevertheless, there was no evidence of an untoward deal, and Clay's political philosophy was much more in keeping with Adams's ideas, especially the desirability of internal improvements, such as the construction of roads, canals, and bridges by the national government. Further hindering the administration was Adams's refusal to remove political opponents from government positions and his failure to forge a national party in a time of rising sectionalism.

John Quincy Adams envisioned prosperous citizens united in defense of individual rights and equality.

Despite these difficulties and the lack of a popular mandate, Adams presented a stunningly imaginative nationalist agenda in his inaugural address. His program, as outlined in his speech and elsewhere, consisted of traditional internal improvements focusing on transportation along with a national university; scientific explorations; laws aiding commerce, manufacturing, agriculture, science, and the arts; and astrological observatories or what he called “lighthouses of the skies.” It was such a bold initiative that many of Adams's friends considered it immature and his opponents called it an arrogant and dangerous plan for concentration of power in the national government.

Although Adams's agenda may have failed to comport with political reality, it did reflect a well-considered political philosophy. The goal of his nationalism was social unity founded upon equality of citizenship within a great societal compact. In such a national bond, he envisioned prosperous citizens united in defense of individual rights and equality. He believed that the chief means of strengthening unity was nationally [Page 5]financed, economically binding, and broadly defined internal improvements, but his theory failed to fully appreciate the growing contradictions of sectionalism, states' rights theories, and slavery, although he detested each.

Adams did show foresight in recognizing the growth of urban poverty. He observed the difficulties of economically isolated urban workers, limited in resources and diversity of skills, in obtaining basic necessities. He further recognized a corresponding concentration of wealth, resulting from the efficiencies of division of labor in an increasingly urbanized and industrialized society. Accordingly, he believed that social stability required both political equality and some measure of economic equalization.

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