Was Thomas

Jefferson a Political
Compromiser?
Yes
 Morton Borden’s Theses
 “Jefferson was a practical politician, above
all, a nationalists who incorporated
Federalists policies with traditional
Republican views in running his presidency.”
 “Jefferson’s indestructible link, then, was ‘a
keen sense of national consciousness,’ a
realization that America was unique. This is
the meaning of Jefferson’s words: ‘We are all
republicans, we are all federalists.’
Main Points:
1) The Louisiana Purchase
2) Construction of Canals and
Turnpikes
3) Bank of the United States
4) Judiciary Authority enhanced
5) Unification of most Federalists and
Republicans
The Louisiana Purchase
 Purchase made by Thomas Jefferson which gave the United
States the area of Louisiana in exchange for 15 million
dollars to France.
 However, the Constitution did not specifically provided for
the acquisition of such foreign territory and it did not cover
the area being turned into states, therefore full members
of the Union.
 The purchase demonstrates Jefferson’s “loose
interpretation” of the Constitution, which was an idea that
strengthened the growth of federal power.
 The reason behind Jefferson’s decision was that he saw the
opportunity to enhance the nation’s power by
manipulating the Constitution which was what federalists’
believed was key to American growth.
Construction of Canals and
Turnpikes
 Jefferson needed Federal support to expand
the canals and turnpikes westward
 Cumberland Road
 Used federal money obtained from public sales
 Supported Gallatin’s to spend 20 million dollars of
the federal money on the network for the canals
and roads
 This expansion of the roads and canals gave
more power to the federal government
westward where Thomas Jefferson felt it was
deserved
Bank of the United
States
 National Bank developed by Hamilton,
who was a major Federalist
 Even though the bank mainly focused on
the increase of the national fund rather
the, Jefferson kept the bank because of its
success during Adam’s presidency
 This compromise by Jefferson highlights
his political ambition for national success
rather than Republican success
Judiciary enhancement
 During Jefferson’s presidency, he enhanced
the power of the judicial branch, even though
he did question some Federalist judges
 This gave more power to the central
government over the State government
 Before his presidency, he was a strong advocate
for State’s rights
 He chose to increase the power of the
Supreme Court because he realized that the
balance of the three branches would then
lead to a better national government
Unification of most
Federalists and
Republicans
 Under Jefferson’s presidency, the separation
between the two political parties seemed to
diminish
 The only who remained were the Radicals of the
two parties
 This unification could have never been
reached without Jefferson compromising
with the Federalists’ ideas
 “We are all republicans, we are all federalists”-
This quote illustrates Jefferson’s aim for unity
My Thesis
 I agree with Borden in that Jefferson
was a political compromiser
 “Throughout his presidency, Thomas
Jefferson made decisions that
benefited his nation as a whole. He
left behind his previous Republican
notions to realize that the success of
the United States depended on the
unification of the Union.”