What Was Thomas Jefferson A Success Or Failure

In “When the Ends Justify the Means,” Barry J. Balleck debates that President Jefferson did not abandon his political ethics by purchasing the Louisiana Territory (P. 14). Balleck states that the Louisiana Purchase was “the greatest achievement of Thomas Jefferson’s presidency” (P. 14). With the addition of the new territory to the United States, President Jefferson secured the nation “for generations, if not centuries to come” (P. 14). Jefferson was confident that purchasing the Louisiana Territory would encourage the development of an upright Republican populace (P. 14). Surprisingly, he had many reservations about his authority to purchase Louisiana, but that did not stop him from laying the treaty before Congress (P. 19). He also knew that, by purchasing Louisiana, the Federalists power might be lost, but he still pushed forward with the treaty (P. 19). Although many historians criticize President Jefferson for giving up his most visible political convictions by purchasing Louisiana, he knew that it would double the size of the United States and ensure much land expansion for the country (P. 20). He strongly believed that the new territory was “essential to national security” (P. 21). In President Jefferson’s mind, purchasing Louisiana secured the “virtues of Republicanism in an ‘Empire of Liberty’” (P. 22). “The Louisiana

The Louisiana Purchase was the largest land transaction for the United States, and the most important event of President Jefferson's presidency. Jefferson arranged to purchase the land for $11,250,000 from Napoleon in 1803. This land area lay between the Mississippi River and the Rocky Mountains, stretching from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border. The purchase of this land greatly increased the economic resources of the United States, and proved Jefferson had expansionist dreams by doubling the size of the United States. Jefferson believed that the republic must be controlled by ambitious, independent, property-holding farmers, who would form

Even though Jefferson was very opposed to loose interpretation of the constitution and judicial expansion under John Marshal, he did discard his strict principles from time to time when it became necessary. “Self-preservation—the first law of nature and nations—took precedence over the constitutional limitations that he scrupulously observed in peacetime.” This is especially true in the case of the Louisiana Purchase. Americans were expanding westward and needed a port for transport on the Mississippi, so Spain allowed them to use New Orleans. In 1801 Louisiana was ceded to France by Spain. France was not as cooperative as Spain and closed the port of New Orleans to the U.S. Therefore, a sudden disruption in trade was a legitimate cause for tension between the U.S. and France, and many people believed that a war would break out if the Americans did not buy New Orleans. Thomas Jefferson himself thought troubles were

In the election of 1800, Thomas Jefferson, a Democratic-Republican, was elected as the third president of the United States. Jefferson was president for two terms from 1801 to 1809. Thomas Jefferson is regarded as one of the most popular and successful presidents. Although he made fatal mistakes such as putting the hated Embargo Act in place, Jefferson had several achievements during his presidency such as the Louisiana purchase. During his presidency, Thomas Jefferson had a great deal of achievements.

Thomas Jefferson once said, “When the people fear the government there is tyranny, when the government fears the people there is liberty.” Thomas Jefferson believed the best government was the one that governs the least . Jefferson stressed how a small government with limited powers is most likely to leave the people alone and have them enjoy the Blessings of Liberty. Furthermore, Thomas Jefferson was a man who had numerous accomplishments in his life. He was the author of the Declaration of Independence, author of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom, founder of the University of Virginia, and the third President of the United States. His strict interpretation of the Constitution was due to his belief that the charter was designed to provide the people with a say in governmental affairs. Mr. Jefferson won the approval from the working class because he fought for them and not the powerful interests of the wealthy. Although Jefferson was a vocal and active leader in the rights of states, his recommendation of the Embargo Act and his support of the Non-Intercourse act resulted in his failure as the Commander In Chief.

Most importantly, Thomas Jefferson deeply contradicted his views on land expansion and violated his policy on following the constitution completely. A prime example of this was the Louisiana Purchase, in which Napoleon offered Jefferson the opportunity to purchase all of France's American territory for only $15 million, doubling the physical size of the nation. The French needed the money to fight a war with the British, and Jefferson wanted the mouth of the Mississippi River for America. So, Jefferson "gave the Constitution a close reading" to seek authorization for such a move. Failing to find any, he decided to unconstitutionally take the offer anyway (Doc C). This clearly violated his previous views on such an issue. However, it is obvious that Jefferson made the right decision in the matter, and the American people should be very grateful for Jefferson's

It was a day in 1801, the day when Thomas Jefferson became the third president of the United States, something no one expected. This day solidified the first peaceful transfer of power from one political party to another. The boy from Virginia, born on April 13, 1743, carried on to become one of the most impactful leaders in the United States. The politician was vice president under John Adams from 1797 to 1801. In addition, Jefferson had the honor to be the first Secretary of State of the United States from 1789 to 1793. This Founding Father was just getting started in showing his nation what he could accomplish. In his presidency of two terms, Jefferson accomplished many things that turned out great for the nation. His actions, however,

Thomas Jefferson was one of the best presidents that the United States had. I say this because he did many things that changed the lives of many Americans. I do consider his presidency to be a success even though he had some troubled times. He did whatever he could to avoid conflict and believed that any man could be reached by reason. He did very important things such as negotiating the Louisiana Purchase and launched the Lewis and Clark Expedition. He also believed that the power of the federal government should be limited.

Primarily, Thomas Jefferson’s essential idea of purchasing the Louisiana Territory was crucial. He understood that

Thomas Jefferson had mixed emotions about the Louisiana Purchase. On one hand, he knew it would be a grand opportunity, and the United States would be assured free navigation of the Mississippi River. Also, it would double our nation in size and be considered one of the largest, if not the largest, land transaction in history. On the other hand, he was conflicted whether or not to buy the Louisiana Territory because of guidelines set forth in the Constitution. The Constitution did not specifically

In order to buy the Louisiana land, Congress had to make the decision themselves, a big decision for a government, this was an accidental show of government power, showing that the American government was not small and had a lot of power; this opposed Jefferson's view on interpreting the Constitution strictly. In the Constitution it states that Congress is not able to buy land. But Jefferson interprets this in a way so that the Congress can, actually, buy land. This shows a change on his views of the Constitution for gain. He previously states that you should interpret the Constitution strictly, but, he later changes this idea in order to buy the land, challenging his own views. Lastly, the Louisiana Purchase challenges his views on being a good president. By interpreting the Constitution as loosely as possible, he does not do what is

Jefferson, himself, carefully deliberated whether the Constitution granted him the right to acquire territory for the purpose of expandi the Union. He reflected on the possible need for an amendment to the Constitution to justify the action. Finally, under intense pressure, he allowed the purchase and set an important precedent. His action established the power of the president to expand the borders of the United States under the existing powers of the Constitution. Despite the economic and political implications of the Louisiana Purchase, the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) had more significant historical implications on this time period.

Some argued that the purchase was unconstitutional because the Constitution didn’t say that Jefferson could purchase the land. Others argued that the purchase was indeed constitutional because the Constitution didn’t say Jefferson couldn’t purchase the land. Also, like said above, Jefferson had an aversion to big moves by the central government. Again, he compromised his beliefs by purchasing a territory from a foreign nation (obviously a huge move by the central government (not by the states)). It is seemingly understandable, however, that Jefferson decided to compromise his beliefs. He was afraid that the French would give up the deal in the time it would take to pass an amendment saying that he could purchase the land. Jefferson also resolved the issue (of constitutionality, his personal beliefs, etc.) by deciding that the growth of the nation (at a modest price) was more important than his own political aversion to big moves by the central government. In addition, Jefferson seemed to have purchased the land in order to protect the United States. First off, Spain’s agreement to give Louisiana back to the French compromised Pinckney’s Treat, which gave the United States access to the Mississippi River. Also, he feared that Napoleon, if he had control over the territory, would close off New Orleans to the United States

At first the United States wanted to buy only New Orleans and the land around it. The purchase met with the strong opposition in the United States on account of being unconstitutional. Those accusations were correct to some extent. President Jefferson couldn’t deny that the Constitution of the United States did not provide for buying new territories but still he decided to proceed with the purchase since the removal of French presence in the region was such an important issue.

In a different path than Washington, Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States, promoted the general welfare of the people and helped them and future generation prosper. “As a man faithful to a more democratic self-government,” he provided a nation a chance to prosper with the help of the new, more powerful government. (Foner, pg. 248) His purchase of the Louisiana Territory provided the people a place to live, greatly increasing the land area of the United States. With a national government, he was able to achieve this purchase with less bickering than if the individual states were sovereign. If this purchase were under the Articles of Confederation and democracy, the dividing of the new land would cause unrest in many of the states on