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Thomas Jefferson April 13,1743-July 4,1826 Republican Terms in Office (1801-1809) Vice Presidents: Aaron Burr (1801-1805) George Clinton (1805-1809)

=__ THESIS __= = After reviewing all aspects of Jefferson’s life and career I would give him a B- for his successes and failures during his presidency. Although he accomplished things, which changed our nation, certain parts of his character were less than admirable. He fought for the ideals of our nation and had many of the same morals as George Washington. Jefferson wasn’t as strong personality wise as Washington and he had an alternate interpretation of equality. =

= __GOAL__ = =**When Jefferson was the president he wanted to purchase the Louisiana territory. This land was owned by Spain at the time but Jefferson believed they could open up the ports in New Orleans to expand their trade and the Mississippi River would help them do that as well. Jefferson asked the congress for ten million dollars to buy the land because he wanted America to stretch from Atlantic to Pacific Ocean. On April 30, 1803 Monroe and Livingston bought the territory from France. The new land and opportunities excited the Americans.** = =__ CONGRESS __= = Jefferson was willing to take major leaps during his presidency, which often required approval from Congress. Although Jefferson was not the best speaker he still managed to influence the decisions Congress made. When it came to the purchase of the Louisiana Territory he needed their approval to give France 15 million dollars. During the court case of Marbury vs. Madison in 1803 he denounced the court ruling as a violation of democracy. He was not given enough support in Congress to propose an amendment o change it but he continued to fight against it. = =__ POSITIVE/ NEGATIVE OUTCOMES __= = One thing that can be viewed negatively about Jefferson is that he refused to support women’s suffrage. He had a thing against intellectual women and was annoyed by their political chatter. Jefferson said” the appointment of a women in office is an innovation for which the public is not prepared, nor am I”. During the 1790’s he believed that Hamilton and Adams wanted to impose the British monarchial system. Since he felt that this would threaten his strong idea of republicanism he supported the War of 1812 to drive the British away. Envisioning America as a place of farmers with “certain inalienable” rights. Jefferson went against the Bank of the United States as well because he predicted that there would be fraud and swindling of peoples funds. Friends of Jefferson often challenged his views on slavery because they believed black were equal to whites. For financial reasons he kept his slaves and continued to go against the American ideal of equality. =

=__ FUTURE IMPACT __= = The greatest impact Jefferson had on America was the expansion of it; this opened so many doors for the Americans and allowed us to farther our trade, resources, and develops faster as a nation. In 1787 before he was president he was somehow able to influence the development of the federal government, which is the base of society today. Jefferson also participated in the development of a national capitol and federal district. Another important contribution was Jefferson keen ability to interpret the constitution in multiple ways. This ability allowed others to view the constitution loosely so it could be modified to fit the people’s needs. In 1815 Jefferson sold his personal library to the government for $23,950 after the British destroyed the US capital. This allowed the government to recommence the Library of Congress expanding its literary scope. = =__ CONCLUSION __= = Overall the country was better after the presidency of Thomas Jefferson. He managed to make some major contributions that still affect our lives today. Our country was able to grow in various ways during his term both physically and mentally. Personally I didn’t agree with some of Jefferson’s outlooks but he was a fairly decent president. He was able to maintain the solid foundation of our nation as well as move us forward. =

**//__ SOURCES __//**

 * 1.) Secretary, Treasury. "JEFFERSON, Thomas." //The History Channel - Home Page//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2010. .
 * 2.) Secretary, Treasury. "JEFFERSON, Thomas." //The History Channel - Home Page//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2010. [].
 * 3.) "Thomas Jefferson Biography - life, family, death, history, wife, young, son, old, information, born, college, house, time." //Encyclopedia of World Biography//. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2010. .