The president and the sedition laws

The quasi-war with France is going badly, the Federalists in Congress have passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, and Adams is caught between his party and his judgment. He has asked Abigail to join him from Massachusetts and has invited Hamilton and Jefferson to dine, hoping for once to hear both sides.

Hamilton defends the laws as necessary in wartime and urges a stronger army; Jefferson, who has quietly drafted the Kentucky Resolutions, warns that punishing criticism of the government is the beginning of tyranny. Abigail says what she thinks, as always. Adams signs nothing at the table but listens, and in the end he refuses to let the quarrel become a war. They eat glazed ham, codfish balls, and hasty pudding, with pumpkin pie and mulled cider.