He didn't want the job. Seriously. By 1789, George Washington just wanted to sit on his porch at Mount Vernon and watch the Potomac flow by. Instead, he was shoved into the center of a political experiment that had a high probability of exploding. What George Washington did as president wasn't just "leading"; he was basically coding the operating system for a country from scratch. If he tripped, the whole thing would have fallen apart. Honestly, we’re lucky he was obsessed with his reputation, because that vanity kept him from becoming a dictator.
Everything was new. Every move he made created a precedent. When he walked into a room, people didn't know whether to bow, shake his hand, or kneel. He chose a bow—formal, but not quite a king.
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Defining the Executive Branch from Thin Air
The Constitution is surprisingly vague. It says the president has "executive power," but it doesn't really explain what that looks like on a Tuesday morning. One of the first things George Washington did as president was realize he couldn't do it all alone. He created the Cabinet. This wasn't in the manual. He grabbed Thomas Jefferson for State and Alexander Hamilton for the Treasury, which, in hindsight, was like putting a wolf and a tiger in a burlap sack and hoping for the best.
They hated each other. Jefferson wanted a tiny government and lots of farms. Hamilton wanted a massive financial engine and big cities. Washington sat in the middle, listening to them bicker for hours. This established the "department" system we still use. He didn't just take orders from Congress; he asserted that the President was the head of the executive branch, not just a clerk for the legislature.
The Great Whiskey Rebellion Mess
In 1794, things got messy. Farmers in Western Pennsylvania were furious about a tax on whiskey. They started chasing off tax collectors and threatening to burn down Pittsburgh. Most leaders would have sent a polite letter. Not Washington. He donned his old military uniform, hopped on a horse, and led 13,000 militia troops toward the frontier.
It was a "don't mess with me" moment for the federal government.
He didn't actually have to fight. The rebels saw the massive army and basically went home. But by doing this, he proved that the new central government had the "teeth" to enforce its laws. If he hadn't acted, the United States might have become a collection of feuding territories instead of a unified nation. It’s one of those pivot points in history that feels small now but was massive then.
Keeping Us Out of European Wars
While Washington was trying to figure out how to collect taxes, France and Britain were busy trying to kill each other. Again.
The French had helped us during the Revolution, so naturally, a lot of Americans—Jefferson included—thought we owed them. They wanted us to jump into the war. Washington said no. He issued the Proclamation of Neutrality in 1793. This was huge. He basically told the world that the U.S. was too young and too broke to get involved in European blood feuds.
He knew that if the U.S. got dragged into a global war in the 1790s, the country would have been crushed. It made him look like a traitor to some, but it was probably the most pragmatic thing George Washington did as president. He chose survival over "honor."
The Financial Foundation: Supporting Hamilton’s Wild Ideas
You can't have a country without money. Back then, the U.S. was drowning in debt from the Revolutionary War. Each state had its own messy currency and its own pile of bills. Alexander Hamilton came up with a plan: the federal government would take over all the state debts and create a National Bank.
A lot of people, especially Southerners, thought this was a power grab. They thought it was unconstitutional. Washington listened to the arguments, weighed the pros and cons, and ultimately backed Hamilton. This created the entire American financial system. He signed the bill for the Bank of the United States in 1791, effectively tethering the interests of wealthy creditors to the success of the federal government.
The Selection of the Capital
Ever wonder why Washington D.C. is a swampy patch of land between Maryland and Virginia? That was a classic backroom deal.
Hamilton wanted his bank. Jefferson and Madison wanted the capital in the South. In 1790, they sat down (the famous "Room Where It Happened" dinner) and traded. Washington oversaw this compromise. He personally helped survey the land for the District of Columbia. He liked the idea of a neutral, federal territory that didn't belong to any single state. He never actually lived there—John Adams was the first to move into the White House—but he laid the literal and metaphorical foundation for it.
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Dealing with Native American Relations
This part of his presidency is often glossed over, but it was intense. Washington's administration oversaw the Northwest Indian War. He wasn't just dealing with peaceful negotiations; he was sending General "Mad Anthony" Wayne to fight a confederation of tribes in the Ohio Country.
After the Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794, the Treaty of Greenville was signed. It forced Native Americans to cede huge chunks of land. Washington viewed Native American tribes as foreign nations but also believed that their "civilization" (by which he meant turning them into farmers) was the only way they could coexist. It was a complex, often brutal, and deeply flawed policy that set the stage for centuries of westward expansion and conflict.
Jay’s Treaty: The Most Unpopular Move
If you want to know what George Washington did as president that almost got him impeached in the court of public opinion, look at Jay’s Treaty of 1795.
The British were still causing trouble. They were seizing American ships and still had soldiers in forts on American soil. Washington sent John Jay to London to fix it. The resulting treaty was... okay at best. It didn't stop the British from messing with our ships, but it did get them out of the western forts and averted a war we couldn't win.
People were livid. They burned John Jay in effigy. They threw rocks at Hamilton. They even started criticizing Washington—the "Invincible General"—in the newspapers. Washington stood his ground. He knew a bad peace was better than a certain-defeat war. He pushed the treaty through the Senate, once again prioritizing the long-term stability of the nation over his own popularity.
The Two-Term Limit: His Greatest Act
Perhaps the most important thing George Washington did as president was... stop being president.
In 1796, he was tired. He was 64, his teeth (what was left of them) hurt, and he was sick of the partisan bickering. He could have been elected a third time. He could have probably stayed until he died. People wanted him to.
Instead, he walked away.
By refusing a third term, he established the most critical precedent in American history: the peaceful transfer of power. He proved that the office was bigger than the man. He didn't want the U.S. to become a monarchy where the leader stays until they’re buried. He wrote his Farewell Address—with a lot of help from Hamilton—and warned Americans about two things:
- Don't get tangled in permanent foreign alliances.
- Stop the "spirit of party" (political polarization).
We didn't really listen to either of those, but he tried.
Actionable Insights from the Washington Era
Understanding Washington's presidency isn't just for history buffs; it offers real-world lessons on leadership and crisis management that still apply:
- Pragmatism over Ideology: Washington often sided with Hamilton's federalist views because they were practical for the economy, even though he personally valued the agrarian lifestyle Jefferson championed. In your own leadership, prioritize "what works" over "what sounds good."
- The Power of the Exit: Knowing when to step down is as important as knowing how to lead. Whether it's a project, a job, or a role, leaving at the right time preserves your legacy and allows for fresh growth.
- Building a Team of Rivals: Don't hire "yes men." Washington’s cabinet was a disaster of conflicting personalities, but it ensured he heard every possible angle before making a decision.
- Establish Precedents Early: The way you start a project or a company dictates how it will run for years. Washington was obsessed with the "first time" for everything because he knew it would become the standard.
Washington wasn't a perfect man—his status as a slaveholder remains a massive, undeniable shadow over his legacy—but as a president, he was the steady hand that kept a fragile experiment from shattering in its first decade. He took a vague outline of a government and turned it into a functioning reality through sheer force of will and a relentless focus on national stability.