Winning independence from Britain did not end disputes between the two nations. Issues of trade and territory remained. To resolve these, President Washington sent Chief Justice John Jay to London in 1794. Even before Jay returned to America, angry rumors circulated speculating that the treaty he negotiated favored the British at the expense of American interests.

Following two months of bitter debate in 1795, the Senate approved Jay's Treaty with barely the required two-thirds majority. When a senator leaked the still-secret agreement to the press, angry mobs accused senators of signing a "death warrant to America’s liberties." Those who had voted against the treaty became heroes. This split helped define America’s first political parties—the Federalists, who approved the treaty, and the Jeffersonian Republicans. When the House made a bid to review the treaty, President Washington refused its request for documents, thereby reaffirming the Senate's exclusive role in approving treaties.

"A death warrant to America’s liberties ..."
—Cry of protesters against Jay’s Treaty, Summer 1795