The Presidency of Thomas Jefferson

Chapter 6, Section 3

Election of 1800 President Adams’ longtime friend, Vice-President, and political rival

Thomas Jefferson began a mud-smearing campaign from within Adams’ Alien and Sedition Acts and new tax policies created

resentment Alien and Sedition Acts: Required aliens (people living in the country that are not citizens) to wait

14 years before becoming citizens Gave the President power to deport any alien without trial that was

deemed dangerous Prevented sedition (incitement to rebellion) by making it illegal to print

or utter anything “false, scandalous, or malicious” against the federal government

Thomas Jefferson (President) and Aaron Burr (Vice-President) ran as the Republican nominees

Jefferson and Burr tied (73) in the Electoral College while Adams came in third (65) A flaw in the system was revealed because each member

supporting the Republicans cast one vote for Jefferson and one for Burr

The Electoral College did not vote for a Jefferson-Burr ticket but rather the 2nd place finisher was made Vice President

The Federalist-controlled House of Representatives had to then choose the president from the two

Turning Point in Government

Alexander Hamilton despised Aaron Burr and rallied the Federalists behind Thomas Jefferson

Jefferson won the election and became the third president

Significance of the Election of 1800 Represented a peaceful transfer of

power… Federalists had controlled the army, the presidency, and the Congress

Longtime friends/rivals Jefferson and Adams refused to speak for years…Adams felt betrayed

A political feud began between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton that would ultimately result in one of their deaths

Rise of the Supreme Court: Marbury v. Madison

“Midnight judges”: federal judges (all Federalists) appointed at the last minute by former president John Adams shortly before leaving Washington to be replaced by newly elected Jefferson

Republicans repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801 in order to abolish the offices of several Federalist judges

Marbury v. Madison William Marbury was a Federalist

“midnight judge” appointed by Adams New Secretary of State James Madison

was supposed to deliver the appointment for Adams but chose not at the request of Jefferson

Republicans hoped to appoint someone else to the position

Judicial Review Marbury v. Madison Marbury appealed the issue to the Supreme Court on the basis

Madison violated the Judiciary Act of 1789 (requests for federal court orders had to go directly to the Supreme Court)

Chief Justice John Marshall and the other justices ruled that the Supreme Court could not issue the order

Basis…According to Marshall, the Constitution did not give the Supreme Court authority to hear a case requesting for a court order

Therefore…Marshall’s ruling made that section of the Judiciary Act of 1789 unconstitutional and invalid

Significance of Marbury v. Madison…introduced a new precedence Establishment of judicial review: power of the Supreme Court to decide

whether laws passed by Congress were constitutional and to strike down laws that were not

Supreme Court assumes the role of having the final say on what the Constitution means and whether or not government acts violate that meaning

Jeffersonian Democracy Jefferson referred to his 1800

presidential victory as the “Revolution of 1800” Federalists acted like royalty

and Jefferson hoped to bring a less formal style to the presidency

Leader of the Democratic-Republican Party

Rode horseback, round dinner tables, opened his door to visitors

Jefferson’s democratic ideals Land ownership by the

masses Small government with little

spending Local militias only, no

standing army

The Jefferson Legacy Resume’ Member of the House of Burgesses Member of Second Continental Congress Writer of Declaration of Independence Governor of Virginia Foreign Minister to France Secretary of State Vice President of the United States President of the United States (2 terms) (Louisiana Purchase) Founded the University of Virginia Writer (Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom) Farmer/Horticulturist (art of growing flowers, fruits, shrubs, etc.) Architect Inventor/Scientist

Jefferson and Adams After finishing his second term as president, Jefferson retired to his

home at Monticello where he finally began to communicate through letters with his old friend and rival John Adams

Jefferson died on July 4, 1826 (50 year anniversary of America’s birth and the signing of his Declaration of Independence)...3 hours later, John Adams also died

The Duel… Burr vs. Hamilton

After losing to the Republicans, the Federalists feared they were losing national influence

Essex Junto: small group of Massachusetts Federalists that drafted a secret plan to remove New England from the Union They encouraged V.P. Aaron Burr to run for Governor of New York in

hopes of extending their movement

During Burr’s campaign, New Yorker Alexander Hamilton humiliated Burr and ruined his chances of winning by telling others he was dangerous and couldn’t be trusted

To restore his honor, Burr challenged Hamilton to a duel On July 11, 1804, the two met in Weehawken, New Jersey Hamilton shot first but missed (purposely?) and then Burr fired

his shot and hit Hamilton in the stomach…Hamilton died thirty hours later

Burr was later accused of treason for plotting to create a new country in the western U.S. but found not guilty

Hamilton’s Death

The Purchase of the Louisiana Territory

France, under the leadership of Napoleon, took the Louisiana Territory from Spain in 1800

President Thomas Jefferson wanted to purchase New Orleans and Florida from the French but Napoleon needed more money to fund his European wars

After American diplomats Robert Livingston and James Monroe bargained with French foreign minister Talleyrand, France agreed to sell all of the Louisiana Territory (2.1 million square miles) for $15 million (4 cents an acre)

The U.S. more than doubled in size and gained complete control over the Mississippi River

Irony: Jefferson believed in minimal government power and

spending…Nothing in the Constitution gave the federal government the right to purchase additional land

The land was bought with U.S. Bonds made possible by Hamilton’s Bank initiative that Jefferson had opposed as unconstitutional

Louisiana Territory

The Corps of Discovery: Lewis and Clark

Meriwether Lewis: private secretary of Thomas Jefferson and veteran soldier

William Clark: war veteran, Indian trader, pioneer

Lewis and Clark were chosen by Jefferson to lead the “Corps of Discovery” for the purposes of investigating the new territory and finding a Northwest Passage (water route to the Pacific)

The expedition (about 40 men) left St. Louis aboard a 55 foot keelboat and 2 canoes and sailed up the Missouri River in the Spring of 1804

Lewis and Clark The expedition discovered that a Northwest

Passage did not exist and were forced to travel through the mountain passes on foot

Encountered several geographic features, animal/plant species, and Native American tribes that were new to the Americans

Sacagawea: Shoshone Indian and pregnant wife of a French fur trader that served as a guide and interpreter after crossing paths with the expedition

After crossing the Rockies, the expedition built boats and sailed down the Clearwater and Columbia Rivers until they reached the Pacific Coast

The expedition then returned to share their encounters and arrived in St. Louis on September 23, 1806

William Clark went on to be a very influential mediator in Indian affairs; raised Sacagawea’s son

Meriwether Lewis suffered from depression and committed suicide

Lewis and clark expedition

Corps of Discovery Facts Length of round-trip journey: 28 months Discoveries: plants, animals, climate conditions,

rivers, lakes, mountains, passes, Native Americans What they carried: books, medicine and medical

supplies, 15 rifles, clothing (45 flannel shirts), presents for Indians (tools, mirrors, tobacco, knives, etc.), camp supplies, and mathematical instruments

Dangers: uncharted terrain, Indian skirmishes, wild animals

Casualties: 1 death (appendicitis) Significance: America was introduced to its great love of the 19th

century… “The West” Learned about the land and its potential

The Pike Expedition

Zebulon Pike: army officer that led an expedition westward in 1806

Pike’s Expedition traveled through the southwestern section of the Louisiana Territory along the Arkansas River and to the Rocky Mountains

Charted the mountain known as Pikes Peak

Mapped part of the Rio Grande Gave a detailed description of the

Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains