Jefferson as President

Jefferson as President

Historians paint Thomas Jefferson as the great father of democracy, referring to his election to the presidency as the “Revolution of 1800”. Jefferson’s life was wrought with contradictions and his policies, as a president, actually reflected a synthesis of the Federalist and Democratic-Republican ideologies. “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists,” Jefferson stated in his first inaugural address. Many Americans were shocked to hear those words come out of the same mouth that had supported the bloody conflicts of the French Revolution years before. Jefferson’s many political theories sometimes reflected an interest in the common man and democracy, while his actual practices were drastically different. In actuality, Thomas Jefferson was an inconsistent man, who was philosophically against the Federalists, but who did not bring about any significant political or ideological changes during his presidency.
Federalist views started to become evident even before Jefferson was he president. In 1776, he designed and composed a Constitution for the state of Virginia. The plan included an effective system of checks and balances, including a lower house which was to be elected by the people, and a senate which was to be elected by the members of the house. When a different constitution was chosen, his criticisms emulated that of a strict Federalist. Jefferson complained that the chosen system lacked a good system of checks. His reasoning was that the Senate and House were both chosen by voters, thus making them too alike. This is when Jefferson concluded that the government, even when chosen by the people, still had too much power.
Perhaps the most prevalent shift of views occurred with the Louisiana Purchase. When Napoleon and the French signed the Treaty of San Ildefonso they regained title to Louisiana from the Spanish. Jefferson’s initial feelings towards this movement were those of excitement because of his admiration and support of the French. These...

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