What was Hamilton’s rationale for placing a tax on whiskey?(1 point) Responses He planned to use the tax to reduce the national debt. He planned to use the tax to reduce the national debt. He wanted to impose a penalty on farmers for producing too much whiskey. He wanted to impose a penalty on farmers for producing too much whiskey. He wanted to distribute the taxes to state governments. He wanted to distribute the taxes to state governments. He wanted to halt the export of whiskey.

Question

What was Hamilton’s rationale for placing a tax on whiskey?(1 point) Responses He planned to use the tax to reduce the national debt. He planned to use the tax to reduce the national debt. He wanted to impose a penalty on farmers for producing too much whiskey. He wanted to impose a penalty on farmers for producing too much whiskey. He wanted to distribute the taxes to state governments. He wanted to distribute the taxes to state governments. He wanted to halt the export of whiskey.

Answer 1

Hamilton's rationale for placing a tax on whiskey was to use the tax revenues to reduce the national debt.

Answer 2

Hamilton's rationale for placing a tax on whiskey was to reduce the national debt.

Answer 3

The correct answer is: "He wanted to use the tax to reduce the national debt." Hamilton's rationale for placing a tax on whiskey was to generate revenue in order to reduce the national debt. To arrive at this answer, we can eliminate the other options by understanding Hamilton's economic policies and the context of the time.

Alexander Hamilton, as the first Secretary of the Treasury, was a proponent of a strong central government, and he believed in the importance of maintaining the country's creditworthiness. One of his main goals was to reduce the national debt that had accumulated during the Revolutionary War. To achieve this, he proposed various economic measures, including the imposition of taxes.

Hamilton recognized that whiskey production was a significant economic activity in the frontier regions of the young United States, particularly among farmers. Whiskey was a commonly traded commodity and a source of income for many. By placing a tax on whiskey, he aimed to generate revenue for the federal government, which could be used to pay off the national debt.

Moreover, Hamilton's tax on whiskey was also intended to assert federal authority over economic activities and establish the power of the central government to collect taxes. This move was part of his broader economic strategy to promote the growth of the federal government and strengthen its ability to manage the nation's finances.

In summary, Hamilton's rationale for placing a tax on whiskey was primarily driven by the goal of generating revenue to reduce the national debt and establish federal authority over taxation.