Still Undecided? A Lesson From Our Most Musical Founding Father

Election day is around the corner, and with two of the most unpopular candidates in history on the ballot, many Americans, especially on the far left and center right, feel they are facing a difficult choice. Some may still be unsure of who they’ll vote for when they enter that booth tomorrow, others may not vote at all, electing to leave the top of the ticket blank, vote third party, or simply stay home come November 8. To these Americans I say…don’t. This election is many things, but entirely unprecedented it is not. There is a historical road map for grappling with this kind of choice, and believe it or not, you can see it on Broadway.

In the Election of 1800, Alexander Hamilton’s Federalist party, riven by factionalism, failed to rally around a single candidate. This left both Federalist President John Adams, and VP nominee, Charles Pinckney (Hamilton’s preferred candidate) with a minority of electoral votes. Instead the electoral college tied with 73 votes each for the two Democratic-Republican nominees. One, Thomas Jefferson, was a former Secretary of State who held political positions Hamilton strongly disagreed with. The other, Aaron Burr, was a New Yorker with a history of shady business dealings, womanizing, and putting his personal gain above the larger good. Beginning to sound familiar?

With the electoral tie thrown to the House of Representatives, Hamilton, who was not a member of that body, did not have to weigh in, in fact he had no vote at all. But as a well known Federalist leader, he had great influence among the party’s members, and he felt compelled to put it to use. He wrote to Federalists in the House, strongly endorsing Jefferson, his political rival, over Burr, who he considered fundamentally unfit for the Presidency, saying

On Foreign Policy
“Mr. Jefferson is respectably known in Europe — Mr. Burr little and that little not advantageously”

On Character
“Mr . Jefferson is a man of fair character for probity…– No compact, that he (Burr) should make with any passion in his breast except ambition, could be relied upon by himself — How then should we be able to rely upon any agreement with him?”

and

On the future of democracy
“Mr . Jefferson, though too revolutionary in his notions, is yet a lover of liberty and will be desirous of something like orderly Government — Mr . Burr loves nothing but himself — thinks of nothing but his own aggrandizement — and will be content with nothing short of permanent power in his own hands”

Try replacing those names…it’s eerie. Ultimately, Hamilton’s behind the scenes efforts paid off. Jefferson won the election, went on to serve a second term, and is consistently ranked among the top ten US Presidents.

Burr on the other hand, continued his escalating feud with Hamilton, went on to murder him a duel, and fled West in an attempt to start his own country. He was eventually arrested and tried for treason. When acquitted, he fled to Europe to avoid his many creditors before returning to New York, where he died in 1836, political career in shambles. Bullet dodged, so to speak.

So undecideds, of the left, right, and center, as you head to voting booths tomorrow (or consider staying home) please ask yourselves, What would Hamilton do? In case you’re still wondering, I leave you with the most compelling line of his letter, slightly modified for our current situation.

By no means, let the voters be responsible for his Elevation — In a choice of Evils let them take the least — Clinton is in every view less dangerous than Trump.