Alexander Hamilton supported the federal assumption of the states’ war debt and the payment of all creditors, including speculators, at face value because he knew the United States would never be a great power unless it enjoyed the confidence of the investing public. He was right; today, faith in the stability of the United States underpins the financial system of the entire world, and Hamilton is a Broadway star.
Donald J. Trump, the “King of Debt,” has openly mused about requiring the owners of US government debt to take haircuts, because that is what he did in his business. The impact of such statements on world opinion and financial markets can easily be imagined.
Jefferson and Trump: who would have imagined them as allies? Not Jefferson, surely.