What laws did President John Adams pass in order to protect the country from enemy foreign nations?
1 Answer
President John Adams passed Alien and Sedition Acts.
Explanation:
In 1798, John Adams signed four bills that would protect the nation from foreign/suspicious persons, especially since we were on the brink of war with France. This was a very poor decision because his popularity vanished after this. There was an uproar from Republicans and future-president Thomas Jefferson refused to support him after these laws were signed by Adams.
Law #1: The Neutralization Act made is more difficult for immigrants to become U.S. citizens by increasing the period it took to become a citizen from five to fourteen years. It was probably the least enforced.
Law #2: The Alien Friends Act allowed John Adams to deport and imprison suspicious people if he deemed them dangerous enough.
Law #3: The Alien Enemy Act is similar to the Alien Friends act except it was against immigrants who come from enemy countries.
Law #4: The Sedition Act allowed the president to identify treasonable activity and deal with it as he saw fit. This was a violation of the First Amendment by many people because "treasonable activity" wasn't clean cut.
