Hamilton (2020)

Chris Jackson: George Washington

Photos 

Quotes 

• Alexander Hamilton : Mr. President, you asked to see me?

  George Washington : I know you're busy.

  Alexander Hamilton : What do you need, sir? Sir?

  George Washington : I wanna give you a word of warning.

  Alexander Hamilton : Sir, I don't know what you heard, but whatever it is, Jefferson started it.

• George Washington : Let me tell you what I wish I'd known/When I was young and dreamed of glory/You have no control/Who lives? Who dies? Who tells your story?

  Aaron Burr : President Jefferson.

  Thomas Jefferson : I'll give him this, his financial system is a work of genius. I couldn't undo it if I tried. And I tried.

  Aaron Burr : President Madison.

  James Madison : He took our country from bankruptcy to prosperity. I hate to admit it, but he doesn't get enough credit for all the credit that he gave us.

• Thomas Jefferson : Did you forget Lafayette?

  Alexander Hamilton : What?

  Thomas Jefferson : Have you an ounce of regret? You accumulate debt/You accumulate power/Yet in their hour of need, you forget.

  Alexander Hamilton : Lafayette's a smart man. He'll be fine. And before he was your friend, he was mine. If we try to fight/In every revolution in the world/We never stop/Where do we draw the line?

  Thomas Jefferson : So quick-witted.

  Alexander Hamilton : Alas, I admit it.

  Thomas Jefferson : I bet you were quite a lawyer.

  Alexander Hamilton : My defendants got acquitted.

  Thomas Jefferson : Well, someone ought to remind you.

  Alexander Hamilton : What?

  Thomas Jefferson : You're nothing without Washington behind you.

  George Washington : Hamilton.

  Thomas Jefferson : Daddy's calling.

• George Washington : This war is hard enough without infighting.

  Alexander Hamilton : Lee called you out. We called his bluff.

  George Washington : You solve nothing. You aggravate our allies to the south.

  Alexander Hamilton : You're absolutely right. John should've shot him in the mouth. That would've shut him up.

• George Washington : The issue on the table: France is on the verge of war with England. Now, do we commit money and aid to our French allies, or do we stay out of it? Remember, my decision on this matter is not subject to congressional approval. The only one you have to convince is me. Secretary Jefferson, you have the floor, sir.

  Thomas Jefferson : When we were on death's door/When we were needy/We made a promise/We signed a treaty/We needed money and guns/And half a chance/Uh, who provided those funds?

  James Madison : France.

  Thomas Jefferson : In return, they didn't ask for land/Only a promise that we'd lend a hand/And stand with them/If they fought against oppressors/And revolution is messy/But now is the time to stand/Stand with our brothers/As they fight against tyranny/I know that Alexander Hamilton is here/And he would rather not have this debate/I'll remind you that he is not Secretary of State. He knows nothing of loyalty/Smells like new money/Dresses like fake royalty/Desperate to rise above his station/Everything he does betrays the ideals of our nation/Ay, and if you don't know, now you know, Mr. President.

  George Washington : Thank you, Secretary Jefferson. Secretary Hamilton, your response.

  Alexander Hamilton : You must be outta your god damn mind/If you think the president is gonna bring the nation to the brink/Of meddling in the middle of a military mess/A game of chess/Where France is queen and kingless/We signed a treaty with a king/Whose head is now in a basket/Would you like to take it out/And ask it? Oh, should we honor our treaty, King Louis' head?/"Ah, do whatever you want/I'm super dead."

• George Washington : Hamilton is right.

  Thomas Jefferson : Mr. President...

  George Washington : We're too fragile/To start another fight.

  Thomas Jefferson : Sir, do we not fight for freedom?

  George Washington : Sure, when the French figure out/Who's gonna lead 'em.

  Thomas Jefferson : The people are leading.

  George Washington : The people are rioting. There's a difference. Frankly, it's a little disquieting. You would let your ideals/Blind you to reality. Hamilton?

  Alexander Hamilton : Sir.

  George Washington : Draft a statement of neutrality.

• George Washington : Thomas Jefferson resigned this morning.

  Alexander Hamilton : You're kidding.

  George Washington : I need a favor.

  Alexander Hamilton : Whatever you say, sir/Jefferson will pay for his behavior.

  George Washington : Shh. Talk less.

  Alexander Hamilton : I'll use the press/I'll write under a pseudonym/You'll see what I can do to him.

  George Washington : I need you to draft an address.

  Alexander Hamilton : Yes, he resigned/You can finally speak your mind.

  George Washington : No, he's stepping down/So he can run for president.

  Alexander Hamilton : Ha! Good luck defeating you, sir.

  George Washington : I'm stepping down/I'm not running for president.

  Alexander Hamilton : I'm sorry, what?

• George Washington : You wanna pull yourself together?

  Alexander Hamilton : I'm sorry. These Virginians are birds of a feather.

  George Washington : Young man, I'm from Virginia. So watch your mouth.

  Alexander Hamilton : So we let Congress get held hostage by the South?

  George Washington : You need the votes.

  Alexander Hamilton : No, we need bold strokes. We need this plan.

  George Washington : No, you need to convince more folks.

  Alexander Hamilton : Well, James Madison won't talk to me. That's a nonstarter.

  George Washington : Ah. Winning was easy, young man. Governing's harder.

  Alexander Hamilton : They're being intransigent.

  George Washington : You have to find a compromise.

  Alexander Hamilton : They don't have a plan. They just hate mine!

  George Washington : Convince them otherwise.

  Alexander Hamilton : And what happens if I don't get congressional approval?

  George Washington : I imagine they'll call for your removal.

  Alexander Hamilton : Sir.

  George Washington : Figure it out, Alexander. That's an order from your commander.

• Aaron Burr : The ship is in the harbor now/See if you can spot him/Another immigrant coming up from the bottom/His enemies destroyed his rep/America forgot him.

  Marquis de Lafayette , Hercules Mulligan : We fought with him.

  John Laurens : Me, I died for him.

  George Washington : Me, I trusted him.

  Peggy Schuyler , Angelica Schuyler , Eliza Hamilton : Me, I loved him.

  Aaron Burr : And me/I'm the damn fool that shot him.

• George Washington : Hamilton, how come no one can get you on their staff?

  Alexander Hamilton : Sir...

  George Washington : Don't get me wrong. You're a young man of great renown/I know you stole British cannons when we were still downtown/Nathaniel Greene and Henry Knox wanted to hire you.

  Alexander Hamilton : Yeah, to be their secretary. I don't think so.

  George Washington : Now, why are you upset?

  Alexander Hamilton : I'm not.

  George Washington : It's all right, you wanna fight/You've got a hunger/I was just like you when I was younger/Head full of fantasies of dying like a martyr?

  Alexander Hamilton : Yes.

  George Washington : Dying is easy, young man/Living is harder.

• George Washington : They're asking me to lead/I'm doing the best I can/To get the people that I need/I'm asking you to be my right-hand man.

  Alexander Hamilton : Treasury or State?

  George Washington : I know it's a lot to ask.

  Alexander Hamilton : Treasury or State?

  George Washington : To leave behind the world you know.

  Alexander Hamilton : Sir, do you want me to run the Treasury or State Department?

  George Washington : Treasury.

  Alexander Hamilton : [with a toothy chuckle]  Let's go.

• Alexander Hamilton : Your Excellency, you wanted to see me?

  George Washington : Hamilton, come in. Have you met Burr?

  Alexander Hamilton : Yes, sir.

  Alexander Hamilton , Aaron Burr : We keep meeting.

• George Washington : Ladies and gentlemen, you could've been anywhere in the world tonight, but you're here with us in New York City. Are you ready for a Cabinet meeting?

  [loud cheers from the audience] 

  George Washington : The issue on the table: Secretary Hamilton's plan to assume state debt and establish a national bank. Secretary Jefferson, you have the floor, sir.

  Thomas Jefferson : "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness"/We fought for these ideals/We shouldn't settle for less/These are wise words/Enterprising men quote 'em/Don't act surprised, you guys/'Cause I wrote 'em/Ow, but Hamilton forgets/His plan would have the government/Assume states' debts/Now, place your bets as to who that benefits/The very seat of government/Where Hamilton sits.

  Alexander Hamilton : Not true!

  Thomas Jefferson : Ooh, if the shoe fits, wear it/If New York's in debt, why should Virginia bear it?/Uh, our debts are paid, I'm afraid/Don't tax the South/'Cause we got it made in the shade/In Virginia, we plant seeds in the ground/We create/You just wanna move our money around/This financial plan is an outrageous demand/And it's too many damn pages for any man to understand/Stand with me in the land of the free/Pray to God we never see Hamilton's candidacy/Look, when Britain taxed our tea, we got frisky/Imagine what gon' happen when you try to tax our whiskey.

  George Washington : Thank you, Secretary Jefferson. Secretary Hamilton, your response.

  Alexander Hamilton : Thomas, that was a real nice declaration/Welcome to the present/We're running a real nation/Would you like to join us or stay mellow/Doin' whatever the hell it is you do in Monticello?/If we assume the debts, the union gets a new line of credit/A financial diuretic/How do you not get it?/If we're aggressive and competitive/The union gets a boost/You'd rather give it a sedative?/A civics lesson from a slaver/Hey, neighbor, your debts are paid/'Cause you don't pay for labor/"We plant seeds in the South. We create"/Yeah, keep ranting/We know who's really doing the planting/And another thing, Mr. Age of Enlightenment/Don't lecture me about the war/You didn't fight in it/You think I'm frightened of you, man?/We almost died in a trench while you were off getting high with the French/Thomas Jefferson, always hesitant with the president/Reticent/There isn't a plan he hasn't jettisoned/Madison, you mad as a hatter, son/Take your medicine/Damn, you're in worse shape/Than the national debt is in/Sittin' there useless as two shits/Hey, turn around, bend over/I'll show you where my shoe fits.