John Quincy Adams and His Failed Nationalist Dream

by Erin
Written March 8, 2006

NARRATOR: John Quincy Adams was the sixth president of the United States. The nation was still young during his presidency, and there was still much question as to how the foundation of the government, the Constitution, should be interpreted. John Quincy Adams, the son of former president John Adams, was a visionary man whose ideas would have molded perfectly with later time periods.

ADAMS: Oh! Aside from believing that billiards will some day be a popular game for the common man, I have many other brilliant ideas for this glorious nation!

NARRATOR: Adams was a creative thinker. He was certainly a unique individual of that time.

ADAMS: This nation ought to be unified by a system of roads and canals! The national government may fund this project. Transportation shall be much easier as a result.

SOMEBODY: That is not a power of the federal government! Nowhere in the Constitution does it say that, you billiards-playing fool.

NARRATOR: Needless to say, that idea was shot down.

ADAMS: Hmph. Well, then I propose that there be a Department of the Interior! This department will regulate the usage of natural resources. Ah, also, a national university would be an excellent addition to this great country! Our deserving citizens ought to be able to easily obtain a higher education. Learning is of utter importance, and the bright people of this nation would be able to attend.

SOMEBODY: Psh, no.

ADAMS, disheartened: I suggest that the government fund scientific research, then. Technological advances will put the United States in the vanguard of science and technology! I daresay this is a magnificent idea.

SOMEBODY: The federal government is not to be involved in such matters.

ADAMS stalks away and becomes a grumpy old man.

NARRATOR: The dreams of John Quincy Adams were not fulfilled during his presidency, nor did he ever live to see them come true. His ideas were very futuristic and not accepted during the time in which he lived. Because of this, Adams’s presidency was actually quite miserable, and he is not exactly remembered as a great president.