"It is a strange perversion of ideas...that men should be deemed corrupt and criminal for becoming proprietors in the funds of their country..."
- Alexander Hamilton
Eventually, the time had come for Alexander Hamilton, the secretary of the treasury, to pick his first ever assistant secretary. Hamilton chose his friend named William Duer, but he had his fair share of issues. Duer had a case of moral myopia. Moral Myopia means that someone has trouble distinguishing between personal gain and public gain and an example of moral myopia could be someone cheating on a test and having no remorse. He even let some of Hamilton's plans slip to some outside sources. It eventually got to Senator William Maclay, who said, "Nobody doubts but all commotion originated form the Treasury. But the fault is laid on Duer." Alexander Hamilton was known for his good judge of character, but he fell victim to the human nature of being blinded by friendship. Duer definitely proved to be detrimental to the reputation of Hamilton. Hamilton eventually had to meet with a man named George Beckwith. Hamilton made sure that Beckwith knew that "the sentiments of the most enlightened men in this country. They are those of George Washington, I can confidently assure you, as well as of a great majority in the Senate." He tried to bargain with Beckwith. Hamilton believed that America and England should be joined by a commercial treaty. He believed that there should be a trade relationship between America and the West Indies because it would be beneficial. He even indicated that someone would be sent to England in order to further discuss current matters. George Washington acquiesced to Hamilton's request and sent Governor Morris to England. It certainly did not take long for Hamilton to snag a spot on the list of "The Most Influential People". It's a miracle he even had time to accomplish all he accomplished. He would have been great at finals in high school.
Hamilton and Madison were considered to be "comrades" in the business world for a long while. In Madison's mind, a long-term debt would be disastrous for America. This thought lit a fire that would eventually lead to the falling out of Hamilton and Madison.
Hamilton believed that the debt of the government was necessary in order for liberty to take a step further and he came up with a few ideas on how to pay off debt. He came up with the idea of a "sinking fund", which would help pay off debt a little at a time. It was a well thought out plan that would help pay off five percent of the debt each year until it was totally paid off. Numerous people believe that his report, the Report On Public Credit, would have been a dry piece of work if Hamilton had not added some spice to it and it definitely stirred up it's fair share of conflict. The House of Representatives didn't debate over it in February of 1790 for no reason.
Hamilton later called upon Madison once again, but he received no help from him. Madison's renunciation felt like and dagger in the heart to Hamilton. When the topic of slavery abolition came about, Hamilton wanted to attack the slavery issue, but Madison wanted the matter to be tucked away out of fear of the southerners reactions. Madison directed all the attention to Hamilton in order to redirect the attention away from the slavery issue.
Surely there's an easier way to have a musical dedicated to yourself, but Hamilton was known for taking on the more dull and difficult tasks.
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