I’m sure many of you are familiar with the Hamilton musical. From their first meeting, Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson had a strained relationship, to say the least. Hamilton sings in the musical about Thomas Jefferson, “We have fought on like 75 different fronts!” and he wasn’t exaggerating!

On July 7, 1793, Jefferson wrote to his best friend, James Madison, to take up his pen against the programs of Alexander Hamilton, the Secretary of the Treasury. At the time, George Washington was President, Jefferson was Secretary of State, and Madison was serving in the House of Representatives.

Jefferson wrote to Madison, “For god’s sake, my dear Sir, take up your pen, select the most striking heresies, and cut him to pieces in front of the public. Never, in my opinion, was so calamitous an appointment made as the present minister of Finance here. Hot headed, all imagination, no judgement, passionate, disrespectful and even indecent towards the President in his written as well as his verbal communications…”

Jefferson and Madison, the author of the Declaration of Independence and the father of the Constitution, respectively, will work as a team to oppose the policies of Alexander Hamilton throughout their political careers. Madison will take up his pen, anonymously under the pseudonym “Helvidius,” as was customary of the time, to write articles opposing Hamilton’s policies and ideas of the role of the executive. We continue these debates throughout American history as we talk about the separation of powers and the role of the executive and the legislative branch in foreign affairs.