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The Louisiana Purchase And Thomas Jefferson's Moral Dilemma

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In my personal opinion, the moral dilemma that Jefferson faced resided in political reality. Jefferson had always advocated a very strict platform of Republican values up until this point. This position had been seen early on in his disagreements with Alexander Hamilton in President Washington's cabinet. In the election of 1800, Jefferson was able to articulate a new type of government that was filled with Republicanism. Jefferson took office and acted as if he was the epitome of Republican values. Republicans believed that the role of government needed to decrease. Jefferson tried to minimize federal control through reducing its reach and scope. He pursued a laissez- faire approach to governance in his time as President, which meant that …show more content…

He was a strong believer in states' rights and thought that rights not explicitly stated in the Constitution should be given to the states. However, in writing the Constitution, there was no way to predict that a deal such as the Louisiana Purchase would ever be possible. Therefore, the power to purchase land from another government, thereby expanding the size of the United States, was never explicitly given to the federal government. Although Thomas Jefferson realized what a deal the Louisiana Purchase was, he had lots of moral doubts about completing the …show more content…

In the act of the purchase, Jefferson was increasing the power of government. The Louisiana Purchase was an example of large government using its federal power to create action. In purchasing Louisiana, it was undecided with the other branches of government. The Legislative Branch did not negotiate with the French government and did not approve of the sale. The treaty and understanding to purchase Louisiana was pursued by the Executive Branch, an example of active government which is far from limited. It was obvious to Jefferson that there was a fundamental political dilemma in running on a platform that advocates for a lesser role in government only to increase it in the purchase of the Louisiana Territory. Jefferson now hesitated with his decision due to the political

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Did Federalists oppose the Louisiana Purchase for practical reasons or political reasons? The Federalists took it from a more political view with some ethical points regarding putting in new states through the executive branch, treatings, and slavery, (Document B ). Hamilton himself hates Jefferson and tried to make him look dumb and lucky and tried to make the possibility of success slim(Document A ). In Document B Rufus King is concerned about admitting new states with treaties through the executive branch or Congress, but if they do they have to follow their treaty and help settlers and property owners have their property “protected”. They are also worried about treating slaves unequally coming from the current increase of the representation

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Our third president of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, had great intentions when he was elected into the presidency. The actions that took place during his eight years in office reflect the principles that Jefferson believed in, and that is what he wanted to achieve. One of Jefferson’s beliefs was having an agricultural-based economy and life, rather than commerce and federal power. “He believed a person who owned a farm and worked the land would be economically independent, and that independence would develop and preserve wisdom, self-control, courage, and fortitude.

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Jefferson’s election in 1800 marked the first peaceful transfer of power between political parties in U.S. history. This showed that the country could transition power without getting into violence or conflict. Jefferson believed in limited government and states rights, which means that he thought the federal government should have less power and the states should have more. Jefferson's purchase of the Louisiana land in 1803 doubled the size of the United States and expanded executive power by allowing the President to make large land purchases without approval from Congress.

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21. Louisiana Purchase- The purchase had happened when President Thomas Jefferson had bought the land from Napoleon Bonaparte of France, as Napoleon needed money to fund the war with France against Britain. As soon as Jefferson had purchased the land area it had made the U.S. twice its size. Jefferson had also sent Lewis and Clark to go and review the land and bring back information on the purchased area.

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The Louisiana Purchase was the purchase of the Louisiana territory by the United States from France in 1803. The U.S. paid fifty million dollars and a cancellation of debts worth eighteen million dollars which averages to less than three cents per acre. The Louisiana territory included land from fifteen present U.S. states and two Canadian provinces. The territory contained land that forms Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska, portions of Minnesota, large portions of North Dakota; large portions of South Dakota, parts of New Mexico, the northern portion of Texas, the area of Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado. The Louisiana Purchase was smart move by the United States.

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One positive aspect of acquiring land was the advantages from Louisiana Purchase. In 1803, Thomas Jefferson purchased the Louisiana territory from France. Lewis and Clark described the land they saw and told Jefferson details about the interactions with the Indians, the landscape, and the creatures of the western world. Maps Clark made throughout the journey were later used to navigate the new terrioty. (Doc A)

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While the supporters of Thomas Jefferson believe that buying foreign land was necessary, those who are against him feel that what he did was unconstitutional. In the source, “Thomas Jefferson to John Breckinridge, 12 August 1803”, the text explains that what Jefferson did was allowed, as it had not mentioned that he couldn’t in the constitution. This controversy is huge, because some people believe that he did not have the right to do so. Jefferson made a point that it wasn’t mentioned in the constitution, so he decided to ratify it and pay for it. Some believe congress did not have the right to authorize this decision.

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Jefferson’s dilemma in the Louisiana Purchase In April of 1803 Thomas Jefferson was faced with many moral dilemmas in the process of buying the Louisiana territory. Though the price for the territory was beyond generous, Jefferson felt that by purchasing the territory he would be going against his beliefs that the constitution should be followed word for word. The constitution said nothing of the president having the power to purchase land from another government, or to use money of the states for the same purpose (“the moral dilemma”). Another problem was once the land was purchased, there was a fear that it could have been a waste since they had no way to know the layout of the land, and what it would be useful for.

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Some have labeled Jefferson’s actions Machiavellian. However, Machiavelli constrained the ruler’s behavior only by political necessity, separating the ruler from conventional Christian virtues. This may be the rare occasion, where Christian values and Machiavellianism can come together for a common purpose. Jefferson anguished over the decision to purchase the Louisiana Territory without a constitutional amendment, and decided it was in the best economic, political, and national security interests of the nation to proceed. Most historians agree with his conclusion; the benefits of purchasing the Louisiana Territory outweighed the cost to his strict constructionist principles.

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They wanted to create a relationship with France, focused on agriculture over commercialism, and free trade. Over time the Federalist party weakened while the Jeffersonian republicans evolved into the Democrats.

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Thomas Jefferson was the third president of the United States, who served two terms from 1801-1809. Thomas Jefferson was in the Democratic-Republican party and was the first president to be a Democratic-Republican. The Election of 1800 was the first peaceful transfer of power in history from Federalists to Democratic-Republicans. This was a turning point as the Federalists were slowly fading away, and the Democratic-Republican were rising as Jefferson became president. Jefferson’s presidency was a mixture of exceptional decisions and disagreeable ones with his handling of domestic and foreign policies.

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He stood up for himself by explaining that he’s doing it for the interest of the people, which is highly believable considering his general morals (Document C). Around a similar time, North African Pirates called The Barbary Pirates because they’re from the Barbary states of Africa, were stirring up some trouble in the seas. They captured US ships and enslaved the crews of them, infuriating Americans. No official war was declared, but Jefferson sent out Navy troops as a response to deal with the Africans. This showed the power and control the Federal Government had over foreign affairs, exactly what Jefferson was opposed to before.

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The Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana purchase was one of the biggest land purchases in history. In 1803, the United States paid around $15 million dollars for around 800,000 square miles of land. This was arguably the greatest achievement of thomas jefferson’s presidency. The louisiana territory was a wild card in the european game of imperialism.

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The Federalists obviously opposed the Louisiana Purchase for political reasons, not practical because they hated Thomas Jefferson. "I am disgusted with the men who now rule us. The coward at the head [Jefferson] is like a French Revolutionary," (Pickering, 1803) stated Timothy Pickering in a letter to Rufus King. This shows, clearly, that federalists only care about opposing Thomas Jefferson, not opposing the Louisiana Purchase. Most federalists, although some had very good reasons for opposing the constitution, only cared about hatred for Mr. Jefferson and with that hatred for all of his ideas.

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Thomas Jefferson always viewed slavery as a “moral depravity and a hideous blot. ”(5) Jefferson felt it also was a great threat to the nation 's survival and opposing the laws of nature, which every person had the right liberty. When the American Revolution was taking place, Jefferson was connected with the legislation in hopes it result in abolishment of slavery. In his attempts to abolish slavery Jefferson drafted the Virginia law in 1778 “that prohibited the importation of enslaved Africans.

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