One of the causes of the Civil War was the breakdown of the political parties that held the nation together. In 1852, the Whig Party fought over who their next presidential candidate should be. The South wanted Millard Fillmore, who was strongly pro-slavery. The North wanted Winfield Scott, who was not. When Scott was nominated, … Continue reading Class Notes →

This may be hard for some to accept, but I feel the truth must be told. Alexander Hamilton, America’s newest hero strongly believed in high tariffs and a large national debt. He believed America should run a deficit to use as a tool for economic growth. Remember that next time you are in the room … Continue reading Class Notes →

As I have said many times, the Constitution is vague.  If it was not so then we would have had to scrap it years ago.  There is nowhere more so than with war powers.  At the same time the Constitution makes the president commander and chief, it also gives congress the power to declare war.  … Continue reading Class Notes →

It is interesting that during the Great Depression, while liberal capitalism was seeming to fail, that America never developed a strong Fascist or Communist party.  In the nations of Russia and Germany, Communism and Fascism were moving their nations out of the Depression faster than the United States.  Stalin’s three five-year plans had industrialized practically … Continue reading Class Notes →

Before the Civil War, the northern economy was rapidly industrializing.  Do not think of the North as industrialized during the war, they were still primarily agricultural, but were moving closer to industrialization.  The difference was the South was not industrializing at all.  The South was becoming extremely wealthy, but they put all their wealth back … Continue reading Class Notes →

The reason the loss of life in the Civil War was so high was because military tactics had not changed since the Napoleonic Wars, yet technology had greatly advanced.  The Civil War generals studied Napoleon at West Point.  The problem is we went from muskets to rifles that allowed accuracy for a much further distance.  … Continue reading Class Notes →

In 1971 during the Vietnam War, Congress passed the 26th Amendment to the Constitution that moved the voting age from 21 to 18.  It was believed that if you were old enough to fight and die for this country, you were old enough to vote.  It was the fastest amendment ever ratified, it was one … Continue reading Class Notes →

Part of the Peace agreement that ended the Revolutionary War, was an agreement for the British to pay slave holders for the slaves that they liberated.  During the British southern strategy, the British promised freedom to any slave that ran away and joined their ranks.  When the War ended the British relocated as many runaways … Continue reading Class Notes →

The 22nd Amendment basically states that a president can only serve for a maximum of 10 years.  If they are VP for more than two years and take over the presidency then they can run for two more terms.  If they have not served two years as VP and take over the office they can … Continue reading Class Notes →

Have you ever wondered why we celebrate our independence in 1776 instead of 1783, when we signed the peace treaty with Britain? It is because in the treaty, Britain did not grant us independence, they only recognized it. That means officially we became independent when we declared it, not when we won the War.