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Thomas Jefferson's Arguments Against The Purpose Of The Government

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Thomas Jefferson stated that the purpose of our government is to "secure our rights to life, liberty, and happiness." I agree with his views due to him supporting the idea that a government should work towards creating an environment where its citizens can live in peace but also be motivated to contribute to its economy to create a stable yet guaranteed utopia. One of the government's main concerns should be its citizens' happiness, meaning it cares for their individual wellbeing and rights. Jefferson agreed that the government being strong would make them secure "economically and military" wise, but feared that a government that is too strong would restrict citizens' rights. I agree with this due to the prior ruling of the king having a past of restricting rights, with no other example of a government its no wonder people of the time feared a strong central government, but due to its …show more content…

I believe that this idea is very reasonable in that it enables our government to not be strong enough like the previous king was, but also not be weak enough to make the same mistakes the articles of confederation did. Jefferson's views that the "influence over government must be shared among all the people" supports his idea on protecting the rights of American citizens. While the government's main role may appear to be to ensure national security physically and economically, I feel that the government's main concern should be the happiness and rights of its people. Jefferson agrees with this view, talking about how "every American should have the right to prevent the government from infringing on the liberties of its citizens." During Jefferson's presidency he was very vocal and active in preserving the rights of every single American citizen but also at the same time preserving their

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