In 1801, Thomas Jefferson was elected as the third president of the United States of America. Jefferson took office as a representative of the Democrat-Republican Party with the goal of creating a bipartisan state. At this time, Federalist and Republican parties had a heated feud between each other. Jefferson wanted to minimize the differences between the two political parties and mend the damage caused from the election. During his first inaugural address, Jefferson announced to the people, “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists.” He stressed the union between the two political parties, as he believed that all Americans shared some similar beliefs, no matter which political party they favored. Following his words, Jefferson pledged
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Jefferson first started with reversing several Federalist policies in favor of the Republicans. He labeled the Alien and Sedition Acts as political and unconstitutional. Instead of repealing the acts, Jefferson let the Alien and Sedition Acts expire to avoid the Federalists’ opposition. Jefferson then amended the Naturalization Act to allow resident aliens to become citizens after five years, which was the original waiting period. He abolished all internal taxes imposed by the Federalists, including the excise tax that sparked the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794. Jefferson reduced the amount of spending in his administration as well as in the nation’s armed forces. His financial cut allowed him to reduce the national debt by more than 25 percent. Jefferson complained that the Federalists were occupying most of the positions in the judiciary branch, leaving no room for the Republicans to serve. Therefore, he repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801 to prevent more Federalists from being added to Congress. Maintaining his promise, Jefferson still allowed for several Federalist policies to remain. He permitted capable Federalist bureaucrats to retain their jobs and only removed 69 out of 433 Federalist …show more content…
Jefferson sent James Monroe to negotiate a treaty with France and to deal for the New Orleans territory. If France were to the refuse the offer, Monroe was to go to Great Britain and negotiate an alliance in case of war with France. Fortunately for the United States, in 1802, Haiti was struck with an outbreak of yellow fever and a slave rebellion that changed Napoleon’s plan for New Orleans. Without a secured base in Haiti and with a new war threatened in Europe, Napoleon offered to sell not only New Orleans but also the entire territory between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River. The $15 million bargain for 828,000 square miles of land was known to be the Louisiana Purchase. While the Republicans approved of the purchase, Jefferson hesitated because there was no provision in the Constitution for adding new territory received from foreign countries. Regardless of his strict interpretation of the Constitution, Jefferson instead followed Federalist views by accepting a loose interpretation of the Constitution, which allowed him to complete the deal with France. However, the Louisiana Purchase raised objections from the Federalists who feared that western expansion would weaken the power of their states and their party. The Federalists were afraid the new territories would be occupied by farmers and become states
Jefferson first started with reversing several Federalist policies in favor of the Republicans. He labeled the Alien and Sedition Acts as political and unconstitutional. Instead of repealing the acts, Jefferson let the Alien and Sedition Acts expire to avoid the Federalists’ opposition. Jefferson then amended the Naturalization Act to allow resident aliens to become citizens after five years, which was the original waiting period. He abolished all internal taxes imposed by the Federalists, including the excise tax that sparked the Whiskey Rebellion of 1794. Jefferson reduced the amount of spending in his administration as well as in the nation’s armed forces. His financial cut allowed him to reduce the national debt by more than 25 percent. Jefferson complained that the Federalists were occupying most of the positions in the judiciary branch, leaving no room for the Republicans to serve. Therefore, he repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801 to prevent more Federalists from being added to Congress. Maintaining his promise, Jefferson still allowed for several Federalist policies to remain. He permitted capable Federalist bureaucrats to retain their jobs and only removed 69 out of 433 Federalist …show more content…
Jefferson sent James Monroe to negotiate a treaty with France and to deal for the New Orleans territory. If France were to the refuse the offer, Monroe was to go to Great Britain and negotiate an alliance in case of war with France. Fortunately for the United States, in 1802, Haiti was struck with an outbreak of yellow fever and a slave rebellion that changed Napoleon’s plan for New Orleans. Without a secured base in Haiti and with a new war threatened in Europe, Napoleon offered to sell not only New Orleans but also the entire territory between the Rocky Mountains and the Mississippi River. The $15 million bargain for 828,000 square miles of land was known to be the Louisiana Purchase. While the Republicans approved of the purchase, Jefferson hesitated because there was no provision in the Constitution for adding new territory received from foreign countries. Regardless of his strict interpretation of the Constitution, Jefferson instead followed Federalist views by accepting a loose interpretation of the Constitution, which allowed him to complete the deal with France. However, the Louisiana Purchase raised objections from the Federalists who feared that western expansion would weaken the power of their states and their party. The Federalists were afraid the new territories would be occupied by farmers and become states