Jefferson as 3rd President
How Will he Take the New Nation to Better Places?
His Views on our Government
Under John Adams we had a federalist government, and now Jefferson is bringing new views into the white house; the Democratic-Republicans.
Jefferson favors a strong state governement, and will most likely base his choices on giving them more power. He also opposes the national bank, which will weaken our national government. However, he also believes in very strict interpretaion of our Constitution, so any and all of his choices will be made through the Constitution. Last but certainly not least, Jefferson believes in a limited National Government, meaning that he fears rule by a single person. We fought to leave that behind, and Jefferson does not want it to creep back again.
Gaining New Orleans; the Louisiana Purchase
We terribly needed the Port of New Orleans, and Jefferson got it for us.
With New Orleans no longer ours, our economy is slowly declining. Desperate, Jefferson offered to by New Orleans from France. Currently waist deep in war debts, France offered Jefferson all of Louisiana for $15 million. Nervous, Jefferson turns to the Constitution for help, and runs into a problem. The Constitution does not literally state that the President can purchase land. So when it came to taking France up on their offer, Jefferson hesitated. In the end though, Jefferson bought Louisiana from France, gaining the Port of New Orleans and almost doubling the size of our country.
Lewis and Clark Return
Meriwether Lewis and William Clark finally return after their journey through the new land bought from France. They return with much more scientific and geological information on the new land. They tell a story of an amazing young Native American, Sacagawea, who helped them in their travels using her language and knowledge of the geography. Now we can finally start making use of the gained land.
Judicial Review; Marbury vs. Madison
After James Madison refused to give William Marbury his commission, Marbury sued and the case was sent to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has ruled the Judiciary Act of 1789 unconstitutional as it gave the Supreme Court authority that was denied in Article 3 of the Consitution. This created a new power for the Judicial Branch, Judicial Review, which allows the Supreme Court to rule cases unconstiutional. This has given the Supreme Court more power, which in this "case" is a good thing.