As the nation's first [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|secretary of the Treasury]], Hamilton's far reaching vision put the United States on an stable financial basis and promoted national unity. His Treasury took over [[state debt]]s as well as [[debts]] owed by the [[Federal government|national government]], and funded them with long-term [[national debt]], which in turn was paid by a new [[tariff]] on imports and a tax on whiskey. He set up the Bank of the United States, a [[central bank]] to make [[liquidity]] in financial markets possible. The nation's business and financial communities for the first time became united in a single [[economy]], and provided critical support for Hamilton. To mobilize that grass-roots support he founded the [[Federalist Party]], which operated in every state. It was the first popular [[political party]] in the world, but soon had competition from the [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republicans]], a party founded by his great adversary [[Thomas Jefferson]]. | As the nation's first [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|secretary of the Treasury]], Hamilton's far reaching vision put the United States on an stable financial basis and promoted national unity. His Treasury took over [[state debt]]s as well as [[debts]] owed by the [[Federal government|national government]], and funded them with long-term [[national debt]], which in turn was paid by a new [[tariff]] on imports and a tax on whiskey. He set up the Bank of the United States, a [[central bank]] to make [[liquidity]] in financial markets possible. The nation's business and financial communities for the first time became united in a single [[economy]], and provided critical support for Hamilton. To mobilize that grass-roots support he founded the [[Federalist Party]], which operated in every state. It was the first popular [[political party]] in the world, but soon had competition from the [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republicans]], a party founded by his great adversary [[Thomas Jefferson]]. |