Thomas Jefferson DBQ Essay

The presidency of Thomas Jefferson, taking place between 1801 and 1809, was the third in America and the first with a Democratic-Republican as the head of the executive branch. Many have questioned the morals of Jefferson in his time in office, and to truly find out his virtues, one must analyze multiple media sources ,both written by and about Jefferson, himself, in the early nineteenth century. As a Democratic-Republican, it is clear that Jefferson was in favor of minimizing the power of the federal government, and maximizing the power given to state governments and the citizens who live under them. Although, at certain points in his presidency, Thomas moved away from his morals or, sometimes, abandoned them entirely, Jefferson was, to a larger extent, a principled leader. In document A, an excerpt from Thomas’ “First Inaugural Address,” one of Jefferson’s stated

Thomas explained further that there are brilliant children who live in the lower class with no access to good education. Jefferson did not have carry out such a kind act for the less fortunate citizens in the country, but he chose to anyway. This bill follows one of Jefferson’s most important morals: helping the common man. By selflessly giving up materials to help give a better education to those who needed it, Jefferson was doing just that.

In conclusion, Jefferson was a principled leader who followed his morals. He spoke about how the state governments should handle domestic issues in his inaugural address in March of 1801 and wrote about the same topic a decade prior during his quarrels with Hamilton, and he wished to help the common man by giving all children a good education. Based on the information in these documents, Jefferson stood out as a principled leader, who wanted to do what he believed was