What would George Washington think of our current government?

This blog post is part of a series of posts written by my middle level/secondary social studies education students at Wichita State University. This post was written by Ross Bruggeman (@RossBruggeman1 on Twitter).

    

In our current Social Studies classes George Washington is revered as a legendary figure who, as the father of our country, is unequaled in United States history. In the current textbook used in my U.S. History I classrooms (Holt’s American Anthem) the heading above Washington’s presidency reads, “A Born LEADER” in a bold, blue font. Undoubtedly, Washington played a key role in the founding of our country and had tremendous values that guided him through his public life. However, his aforementioned role as a legend often leads us to remember him only for his past instead of relating his ideas to the present. Our textbook mentions how Washington set up his cabinet, worked with Alexander Hamilton on a financial model, squashed the Whiskey Rebellion, and gave up office with a famous farewell address. Specifically, Washington’s Farewell Address has a short excerpt that warns against political parties. Following a short lecture from textbook information, and in order for my students to gain perspective on the address, I began my lesson with the question: How would Washington view the state of the U.S. government today? Many of my students thought Washington would be satisfied with the added rights of citizens and the power the U.S. now wields in the world.

Next, in order for my students to gain a better understanding of what exactly Washington’s address was about I have my students view a short video clip about the Farewell Address (video here). This video gives a quick overview of the accomplishments of Washington’s Farewell Address, including the advice Washington offered to posterity. To reiterate this information and promote a discussion I also provided more excerpts of the address and talk with my class about them.

Washington’s Farewell Address Extolls the benefits of the federal government. "The unity of government...is a main pillar in the edifice of your real independence...of your tranquility at home, your peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very liberty which you so highly prize." Warns against the party system. "It serves to distract the Public Councils, and enfeeble the Public Administration....agitates the Community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms; kindles the animosity of one....against another....it opens the door to foreign influence and corruption...thus the policy and the will of one country are subjected to the policy and will of another." Stresses the importance of religion and morality. "Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths, which are the instruments of investigation in Courts of Justice?" On stable public credit. "...cherish public credit. One method of preserving it is to use it as sparingly as possible...avoiding likewise the accumulation of debt....it is essential that you...bear in mind, that towards the payments of debts there must be Revenue, that to have Revenue there must be taxes; that no taxes can be devised, which are not...inconvenient and unpleasant..." Warns against permanent foreign alliances. "It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world..." On an over-powerful military establishment. "...avoid the necessity of those overgrown military establishments, which, under any form of government, are inauspicious to liberty, and which are to be regarded as particularly hostile to Republican Liberty."

We discussed all of these excerpts and my students delved deeper into the topics by asking great questions. When talking about Washington’s advice to avoid permanent, entangling alliances many students scoffed at our current international relationships. When talking about the need to avoid a party system as addressed by Washington, my students were quick to condemn the current state of our legislature where things rarely get done. But the students were really in an uproar when we discussed public credit in Washington’s view. I showed the students a website with the national debt clock included (http://www.usdebtclock.org/) and explained exactly how much each citizen in the United States owes to the government.

   
During this lesson, we discussed briefly how our world differs from the world that George Washington lived in. We discussed how our current alliances help to deter some military actions and provide better security for ourselves and our trading partners. However, given more time, I would discuss this aspect of Washington’s Farewell Address in more depth. For example, we would be able to delve deeper into why some economists believe that keeping a national debt is necessary or why many citizens do join political parties when Washington felt so strongly that these would lead to less discussion between citizens.

But, the best discussion came after a particular student asked a great question, “What can we do?” It was a simple and to the point but it was the type of questions that I hope will be asked often in my classroom. We discussed more about national debt and what our politicians are doing to fix current problems. Although this is hard to do without showing personal biases, I was able to stay above the current political fray and explain the different sides’ viewpoints.

   
After discussing this all with my students, I asked the students to write a quick one paragraph summary of what we learned during this lesson. I ended the class feeling good about how my lesson reached the students and forced them to ask the deep questions. However, to my surprise, the students came back the following day still asking questions about our current budget and how much we add to the deficit each year. It was exciting to see the students really take an interest in such an issue.

My lesson was simple in design but I felt it accomplished a main goal of my lessons: that students ask deep questions about how they can influence their country.