The main differences between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson lie behind what they thought the principle of government was. According to Hamilton, government was needed to protect individual liberties. Hamilton was the leader of the Federalist Party also known as the Hamiltonians, who strongly supported his ideas. They believed in order for Americans to be free they needed a strong central government ran by well-educated people such as Hamilton himself, to protect individual liberty. “He advocated a strong central government, and refused to be bound by the strict wording of the constitution” (PG. 159). Hamilton was concerned about the role of people who would shape public policy, he distrusted common man. Hamilton also pushed for industrial
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It gave them a chance to start a new form of government without a king. The only problem was Hamilton and Jefferson did not have the same idea of the type of government they wanted to accomplish for their new nation. Hamilton wanted to accomplish a strong central government. He wanted a government that would be able to control the people’s behavior. He understood that “sometimes good people do bad things and bad people do good things”, this gave Hamilton an advantage because Jefferson did not recognize this. Hamilton wanted to form a national government to help them get out of debt resulting from the American Revolution, he planned to borrow money from European banks then pay it back. He believed our national government had to be strong enough in order to defend ourselves. Jefferson completely disagreed with Hamilton’s ideas of government. Jefferson wanted to accomplish a small, weak government that is not to powerful. He wanted the nation to consist of only independent Yeomen farmers. He also believed a national bank would be corrupt and should be avoided. Jefferson thought a strong national government would be dangerous to the people’s protection and security. He thought government needed to be watched closely and cut in its …show more content…
He also favored a low spending federal government. Before Jefferson became president he “ordered substantial cuts in the national budge.” (PG. 184) He also reduced the size of the army by 50%, leaving only 3,000 soldiers left to guard the frontier. Not to mention, he also retired most of the Navy’s warships, leaving us a weak army. Once Jefferson becomes president congressmen alerts Jefferson to prepare for a war against France. In addition, “Spanish officials who still governed New Orleans announced the closing of that port to American commerce (October 1802).” (PG. 184) Leaving Jefferson in a tough position he preferred to negotiate rather than going to war. This negotiation resulted in the Louisiana Purchase. The American people were enthusiastic about the new state but Jefferson “worried that the purchase might be unconstitutional. The president pointed out that the Constitution did not specifically authorize the acquisition of vast new territories and the incorporation of thousands of foreign citizens.” (PG. 185) Although he felt his act was unconstitutional he still sent Lewis and Clark to explore the vast territory. Also once he became president he realized we needed a stronger government to take on unexpected challenges, leading him to put money back into the army, which goes against his low spending
It gave them a chance to start a new form of government without a king. The only problem was Hamilton and Jefferson did not have the same idea of the type of government they wanted to accomplish for their new nation. Hamilton wanted to accomplish a strong central government. He wanted a government that would be able to control the people’s behavior. He understood that “sometimes good people do bad things and bad people do good things”, this gave Hamilton an advantage because Jefferson did not recognize this. Hamilton wanted to form a national government to help them get out of debt resulting from the American Revolution, he planned to borrow money from European banks then pay it back. He believed our national government had to be strong enough in order to defend ourselves. Jefferson completely disagreed with Hamilton’s ideas of government. Jefferson wanted to accomplish a small, weak government that is not to powerful. He wanted the nation to consist of only independent Yeomen farmers. He also believed a national bank would be corrupt and should be avoided. Jefferson thought a strong national government would be dangerous to the people’s protection and security. He thought government needed to be watched closely and cut in its …show more content…
He also favored a low spending federal government. Before Jefferson became president he “ordered substantial cuts in the national budge.” (PG. 184) He also reduced the size of the army by 50%, leaving only 3,000 soldiers left to guard the frontier. Not to mention, he also retired most of the Navy’s warships, leaving us a weak army. Once Jefferson becomes president congressmen alerts Jefferson to prepare for a war against France. In addition, “Spanish officials who still governed New Orleans announced the closing of that port to American commerce (October 1802).” (PG. 184) Leaving Jefferson in a tough position he preferred to negotiate rather than going to war. This negotiation resulted in the Louisiana Purchase. The American people were enthusiastic about the new state but Jefferson “worried that the purchase might be unconstitutional. The president pointed out that the Constitution did not specifically authorize the acquisition of vast new territories and the incorporation of thousands of foreign citizens.” (PG. 185) Although he felt his act was unconstitutional he still sent Lewis and Clark to explore the vast territory. Also once he became president he realized we needed a stronger government to take on unexpected challenges, leading him to put money back into the army, which goes against his low spending