"Washington On Your Side" is the 8th song of Act Two of Hamilton. It is the 31st song overall.
After Hamilton's easy win in the previous cabinet battle, Jefferson, Madison, and Burr together realize how much power Hamilton holds, as well as how much power he has taken from them. Convinced that Hamilton's power is firm only as long as he has Washington's support, they sing about how easy it must be to have such power with a political body and military leader on your side, and about how he is a fraud, and nothing without Washington. For example, the lyrics 'the emperor has no clothes' essentially means Hamilton is a fraud and a liar.
Lyrics[]
[BURR]
It must be nice, it must be nice
To have Washington on your side
It must be nice, it must be nice to have
Washington on your side
[JEFFERSON]
Every action has its equal opposite reaction
Thanks to Hamilton, our cabinet's fractured into factions
Try not to crack under the stress, we're breaking down like fractions
We smack each other in the press, and we don't print retractions
I get no satisfaction witnessing his fits of passion
The way he primps and preens and dresses like the pits of fashion
Our poorest citizens, our farmers, live ration to ration
As Wall Street robs 'em blind in search of chips to cash in
This prick is asking for someone to bring him to task
Somebody give me some dirt on this vacuous mass
So we can at last unmask him
I'll pull the trigger on him, someone load the gun and cock it
While we were all watching, he got Washington in his pocket
[JEFFERSON & BURR]
It must be nice, it must be nice
To have Washington on your side
It must be nice, it must be nice, to have
Washington on your side
Look back at the Bill of Rights
[MADISON]
Which I wrote
[MADISON/BURR/JEFFERSON]
The ink hasn't dried
It must be nice, it must be nice
To have Washington on your side
[MADISON]
So he's doubled the size of the government
Wasn't the trouble with much of our previous government size?
[BURR]
Look in his eyes
[JEFFERSON]
See how he lies
[MADISON]
Follow the scent of his enterprise
[JEFFERSON]
Centralizing national credit
And making American credit competitive
[MADISON]
If we don't stop it, we aid and abet it
[JEFFERSON]
I have to resign
[MADISON]
Somebody has to stand up for the South
[BURR]
Somebody has to stand up for his mouth
[JEFFERSON]
If there's a fire you're trying to douse
[JEFFERSON & MADISON]
You can't put it out from inside the house
[JEFFERSON]
I'm in the cabinet, I'm complicit in
Watching him grabbing at power and kissin' it
If Washington isn't gon' listen
To disciplined dissidents, this is the difference:
This kid is out!
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
Oh!
This immigrant isn't somebody we chose
Oh!
This immigrant's keeping us all on our toes
Oh!
Let's show these Federalists who they're up against
Oh!
[JEFFERSON & MADISON]
Southern motherfuckin'—
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
Democratic-Republicans!
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR/ENSEMBLE]
Oh!
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
Let's follow the money and see where it goes
[ENSEMBLE]
Oh!
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
Because every second the Treasury grows
[ENSEMBLE]
Oh!
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
If we follow the money and see where it leads
Get in the weeds, look in the seeds
Of Hamilton's misdeeds
It must be nice, it must be nice...
[MADISON]
Follow the money and see where it goes
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
It must be nice, it must be nice...
[JEFFERSON]
The emperor has no clothes
[JEFFERSON/MADISON/BURR]
We won't be invisible, we won't be denied
Still
It must be nice, it must be nice
To have Washington on your side
Gallery[]
