Genêt’s arrival sparked increasing tension within Washington’s cabinet, with Thomas Jefferson sympathetic to the French and Alexander Hamilton sympathetic to the British. Genêt sought to appeal directly to the American public for his cause, a move that, in the words of one historian, did more than spark the origins of our two-party system. “Political dialogue was impassioned, street brawls were not uncommon, and old friendships were severed.”35 In 1793, Washington and the members of his cabinet overcame their differences and united in demanding Genêt’s recall to France.36
