By PETER S. FERRARA<br>Record Columnist
A friend recently reminded me that George Washington was not the first to hold the title of "president" in America. There were, in fact, 14 different men who were "presidents" before Washington. But before we re-write history to make Washington our "15th president," it should be pointed out that those who went before him were not presidents in the sense we know today's president to be. The U.S. had not ratified a Constitution, so these "presidents" should more accurately be described as "heads of government" rather than as "Presidents of the United States," a title they never held.
From 1774 to 1788, America was born in war and was nearly lost in territorial and political squabbling. The Continental Congress was formed by the thirteen colonies so that they could speak in a single voice to the English King. The colonists were chafing under what they saw as the oppressive rule of England, in which the colonists were second class citizens in the British Empire. In only its second meeting, the Continental Congress declared our independence and asserted its own right to govern.
The first President of the Continental Congress was Virginia's Peyton Randolph. He was followed by:
•Henry Middleton, (Randolph then served a second "term"),
• John Hancock, and
• Henry Laurens.
In 1777 this Congress proposed Articles of Confederation to the states under which they could be governed, but these Articles were not ratified until March 1, 1781. John Jay, Samuel Huntington, and Thomas McKean followed Laurens as "president," and some today consider Laurens' successor John Hanson to be the first President of the United States.
This is not accurate, though, because without a ratified and adopted Constitution, there really was no "United States," merely a confederation of fiercely independent colonies. About the only thing the colonies agreed on was breaking away from England's rule, and even that issue had divided them into warring factions. Following Hanson were Elias Boudinot, Thomas Mifflin, Richard Henry Lee, John Hancock (again), Nathaniel Gorham, Arthur St. Clair, and Cyrus Griffin.
When the Constitution was finally hammered out and agreed upon and ratified, the colonies actually became the United States of America. That was when Washington was made our very first true President. Before his presidency, those who presided over the Continental Congress and later of "the United States, in Congress Assembled" were more figureheads than actual wielders of executive leadership. It was the Constitution which established our three branches of federal power, and only when that blessed document was in place did America truly have a "president" as we know one.
We should never underestimate the great national service provided by those who led our government before Washington. But an example of just how weak their "presidency" was is illustrated by the fact that John Hancock was "president" from November 23, 1785 to May 29, 1786 without ever actually serving because of illness. That position held so little actual authority that the others in congress felt no need to replace Hancock while he was ill.
It was George Washington who was the man we honor as the true first President, because he actually did hold sway with genuine power and a vision for what America can and should become. He was and always shall be called the "Father of His Country" because most historians agree that without Washington this country would never have been born. There is no need for me to remind you of all the splendid things Washington achieved in bringing this nation into being. He led the Continental Army to victory over the British. His presidency set a standard of selflessness and leadership never equaled in our history.
While the chopping of his father's cherry tree and the resultant "I cannot tell a lie" confession is viewed with skepticism by historians, no one argues about Washington's place in the hearts and minds of all Americans. Washington, tired in his bones after the war and the struggles to form a united government, simply wanted to leave public life and return to his beloved Mount Vernon and retire. But it was clear that there was simply nobody else the Founding Fathers could agree on to lead the new nation. Against his will and his nature, Washington became our first true American president.
After serving a four year term, Washington announced he was stepping down. By then, however, political parties had already begun to divide and threaten America. Alexander Hamilton and the Federalists wanted the country to be run by a strong central government in coordination with the state governments. Jefferson's "Democratic-Republican Party" wanted power to basically reside in the states and have a weak central government,
Strange how this very argument torments America today. Washington's response was given in what has become known as his "Farewell Address." Every American should read this document, even as it is still read in the U.S. Senate every year on Washington's birthday of February 22nd. The most interesting part to me is the length Washington goes to in order to denounce all political parties. He warned that political parties almost always end up putting their interests ahead of the nation's. They divide us through lies and deceptions, counting on the ignorance of the people to fuel their fire. Washington warns repeatedly against political parties and their destructive attributes.
He would look at today's gridlock, caused in large part by political parties' blind self-interest, and say: "See, I told you that's what they would do to America! Abolish them in the name of the common good!" Amen to that, Mr. President—and Happy Birthday!
