United States v. Thomas Cooper Background In the period following the ratification of the Constitution, the government of the United States was under Federalist control, first with George Washington and then under the presidency of John Adams. John Adams (1797-1801) and the Federalists, fearful of internal dissent while embroiled in international conflict with France, sought to reduce effective opposition through the enactment of a series of laws by Congress known as the Alien and Sedition Acts.