A Magnificent Catastrophe: The Tumultuous Election of 1800

The book A Magnificent Catastrophe was written by Edward Larson, who is a prominent scholar. Firstly, Edward Larson is a university professor of History at Pepperdine University and holds the Hugh and Hazel Darling Chair in Law. Larson also holds a PhD in the history of science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison as well as law degree from Harvard. These academic credentials have enabled Larson to lecture on all seven continents, and some of the key institutions he has taught over the years include: University of Melbourne, Stanford Law School, the University of Georgia and Leiden University. Before Larson became professor, he practiced law in Seattle as well as served as counsel for the United States House of Representatives in Washington, DC. 

Larson is also a recipient of the coveted Pulitzer Prize in History in addition to the numerous awards he has received for writing and teaching. Apart from the book A Magnificent Catastrophe , he has also authored or co-authored fourteen other books and more than one hundred published articles. Most of the time, Larson lectures, and in this light, he has taught short courses at various universities in Europe, China, and South America. His deep enthusiasm, especially over history in politics has made him deliver public lectures in different universities all over the world, many of which he has never taught. The background of Edward Larson evidently portrays him as a prominent scholar, who has a special interest in the political affairs of the United States. America has a rich history because it has a unique system of government. Many people would wonder how such a vast country is able to remain intact, considering the fact that the United States has one of the fiercest political rivalries. Most of the elections are divisive, and quite often full of propaganda. 

One of the points raised in the book is that the current fierce political rivalry, which is characteristic of American politics, can be traced back to the presidential election of 1800. That to a large extent, the rivalry of the presidential candidates taking part in the elections at the time, shaped how American politics would be conducted for the following years. Indeed the presidential election of 1800 involved bitter rivals; Jefferson, Adams, and Pinckney. The latter two were Federalists, while Jefferson was a Republican. Although the competition ought to have been between a Republican and Federalist candidate, the Federalist Party was already divided. Currently, it is not very possible for the Republican or Democrat party to have two presidential candidates at any single election. The best that can happen is for a candidate to defect or vie as an independent candidate if they feel their party does not embrace their ideologies. It is also not very clear why and how the Federalist Party allowed two candidates to vie for the same office. 

Smear campaign, as the author suggests has a foundation in the 1800 presidential campaigns. Previously, elections had been calm or rather; people were too scared to show their fury publicly. America was a young nation by that time, and most people could have exercised restraint for fear of dividing the country along political differences. One of the sensitive issues at the time was religion, and as Larson points out, Jefferson, a Republican candidate was accused severally of being a non-believer; many people thought he was an atheist. In comparison to the current political situation in the United States, many people do not care so much about the religious affiliations of political leaders. Religion must have been a very important political campaign in the 1800. The most formidable Federalist candidate, Adams, also did not escape smear campaigns, his biggest critics saying that close contact with the British meant that he supported the monarchy. Since America had got independence only a few years back, such accusations could open wounds of the effects of colonization. Most of the voters could reflect back on forced labor, law wages, and mistreatment from the colonizers. 

Indeed, smear campaigns have always existed in American politics. For example, heading towards the 2016 U.S presidential elections, Hillary Clinton, a Democrat candidate, was taken through a storm for using her personal email for official government duties. Her presidential campaign hit a wall especially when it was discovered that she had deleted the emails. The quick and mysterious disappearance of the emails, amid investigations from the FBI cast suspicions on her; the public’s opinion was that the deletion of the emails meant that she had not done the right thing, and that she was trying to evade justice. Donald Trump would use the issue of the emails on most occasions to pin her down. On the other hand, Donald Trump would severally face allegations of assaulting women sexually. Some of his perceived victims, most probably coerced by his opponents, would spill the beans to the media. These allegations would taint the presidential candidates negatively, sometimes even exhausting them. During the 1800 presidential campaign or a short period before that year, the Federalists would use the excuse of patriotism or nationalism to hold onto power, as well as to attempt to increase their influence. At that time, Republicans were advocating for freedom of speech, worship, among others, but the Federalist government would punish the dissidents, mainly the Republicans, in an attempt to reduce their influence among the voters. 

It is interesting how the political landscape has changed; although Larson seems to suggest in the book that most of the political aspects currently are a replica of the events of the 1800 presidential campaign and elections, indeed some changes can be observed. In 1800, the Republican Party was not conservative; it advocated for the freedom of worship and speech. The Federalist Party tried to gag media freedom, and agitated for the deportation of people who were against the government of the day. Currently, the Republican Party seems to promote conservative ideals. Firstly, most Republicans were against President Obama’s support for people who identified themselves as homosexuals. Donald Trump has variously been heard in rallies and political functions opposing and criticizing gay rights or any rights protecting homosexuals. Secondly, Donald Trump always poses as a Christian or a believer in God, most of the time going to Israel to show the image of a staunch Christian to his conservative followers. 

Perhaps more surprising, Donald Trump, a Republican, has always come up with policies that target immigrants. African Americans have always found themselves being hunted down for lack of proper residence documents and deported back to their countries. Even more interesting, Donald Trump has suggested building of a massive border wall to hinder the illegal migration of Mexicans to the United States, despite the fact that a considerable number of people in the United States speak Spanish. Therefore, things have not remained the same since 1800 as it is evident from the change of the Republican ideology of liberalism to conservatism. It is also likely that the future political field of the United States will change according to the modern political trends. Politics is full of unpredictability, and since it is always about competition for power, parties, and politicians can change tune according to the political environment of the day. 

A Magnificent Catastrophe covers a historical view of American politics, and therefore, some of the aspects mentioned in the book may not be applicable to the current political dynamics of the United States. As already mentioned, it is not possible, for instance, for the Republican or Democratic parties to have two presidential candidates at the same time currently. The Electoral College voting system is still in existence, although many people criticized the system heavily after the 2016 presidential elections. It could indeed be a controversial voting system because the 1800 presidential elections were also marred by the same controversies. The system could change in the future, especially when voters insist that they want their votes to count. While Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in 2016, Donald Trump became president because he won the Electoral College vote. The book gives a good account of politics of bitter rivalry, seemingly alluding that the 1800 presidential elections changed the elections forever. It is not clear whether the change was for the better or the worse. However, whether with or without the 1800 elections, rivalry would have existed anyway because power struggles in all societies around the world are characterized by rising political temperatures, as well as smear campaigns. 

To conclude, A Magnificent Catastrophe is a good read, firstly because Edward Larson is an informed and prominent scholar. Secondly, many people could be enthusiastic about finding out what happened during the 1800 presidential elections, which are often described as elections that had first major campaigns, and rising political temperatures. The book provides an account of the major players in that election and the ideologies they stood for. Although politics has changed in various aspects in the United States, many of the events that happened in 1800 can still be observed in the current political environment, now that the United States is about to conduct presidential elections this year. 

Reference 

Larson, E. J. (2007).  A magnificent catastrophe: the tumultuous election of 1800, America's first presidential campaign . Simon and Schuster.