The term 'cabinet' began to be applied to the heads of the executive branch departments late in Washington's first term, and Washington relied on his cabinet as an advisory council. The Constitution made it clear that the persons appointed to lead these agencies had to answer to the president, it was silent on termination of cabinet appointments. The intense battle over the Jay Treaty in 1795 had previously polarized politics throughout the nation and alienated the French. The Jay Treaty had resolved few of the major American complaints against the British, including the ongoing British impressment of American sailors, but Washington viewed the treaty as the best method of avoiding another war with the British. The French were outraged by the Jay Treaty and began seizing American merchant ships that were trading with the British. News of the signing of the convention did not arrive in the United States until after the election. Overcoming the opposition of some Federalists, Adams was able to win Senate ratification of the convention in February 1801. Having concluded the war, Adams demobilized the emergency army.