Washington’s Partisan Politics Warning
George Washington devoted much of his 1796 farewell address to the dangers of political parties. He predicted they would foster “jealousies and false alarms” that would destroy national unity. The emerging Federalists and Democratic-Republicans completely ignored his advice. They chose ideological battles over cooperation. This rejection of Washington’s wisdom set America on a path of increasing polarization. Even the peaceful transfer of power became difficult, as evidenced by the contentious election of 1800.
