Jefferson as President

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Jefferson as President

• 1801-1809

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Almost didnt become president

• Jefferson, Burr, Adams running
• J and B get 73 electoral votes
• Q Whats an electoral vote?
• Adams gets 65
• How to break the tie? House of Representatives
  votes
• 35 rounds of voting later, some of Adams
  supporters switch sides and vote for Jefferson
• Q Hamilton, despite hating Jefferson, urged this
  switch why?

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Very different from Adams and Washington

• Trade and law of nations should drive relations
  with other countries
• Not military power
• Despite differences, wanted to make nice with
  Federalists
• Urged tolerance of diverse opinion
• Federalists largely avoid his inauguration in the
  new capital, Washington DC

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Domestic program

• Q What does domestic mean?
• Dismantles Federalist domestic programs
• Reduced the size of the army and navy
• Abolished whiskey tax
• Cut the national debt
• Prevented Adams last-minute appointed judges to
  take their seats

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• Napoleon

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Foreign issues

• France and Britain no longer at war
• American trade with Europe increasing
• France gets Louisiana Territory back from Spain
  in 1800
• US is concerned
• France is strong, Spain was weak
• New Orleans is an important port for US trade
  down the Mississippi

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Lets Make a Deal

• Jefferson sends James Monroe (Sec of State) to
  France to buy New Orleans
• Just before this, Napoleon lost a battle against
  a slave uprising in Haiti
• Napoleon needs cash, offers the whole place for
  sale (15 million)
• Without approval, Madison says yes
• US doubles in size

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Lewis and Clark

• Madison negotiates purchase of Louisiana from
  France
• Jefferson chooses to send Meriwether Lewis and
  William Clark to explore the new territory
• Hopes of getting to the Pacific
• Scientific research
• Understand natural resources

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Lewis and Clark

• Lewis and Clark hire a French-Canadian fur
  trapper and his Native American wife Sacajawea to
  help them
• Reaches the Pacific in 1805 (Astoria, Oregon)
• Returned east in 1806
• Spent the winter in Astoria, complained about the
  rain

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Unhappy Federalists

• They fear that new territories would become
  states and those voters would favor Jeffersons
  party forever
• What about slavery? Would new states be slave
  states or free states?
• Constitution says almost nothing about adding new
  territories which then could become states

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More European problems

• Jefferson gets re-elected in 1805
• Napoleon is at his peak in Europe, at war with
  Britain again
• Britain says all ships from US going to France
  need to be searched on the way
• France says any ships stopping in Britain can be
  seized
• Cant win

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Impressment

• Impressment forcing foreigners to serve in the
  British navy
• Britain did this for years to Americans captured
  at sea
• Up to 10,000 had been forced to do this before
  1812
• Congress tries to force a treaty with Britain,
  Jefferson refuses to deal with it
• Jefferson loathes Britain

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Conflict

• 1807 British stop a US ship (Chesapeake)
• Americans refuse to let the ship be searched
• British open fire, killed 3 and seized 4
• Americans want war, Jefferson refuses
• Jefferson tries to coerce Britain and France into
  getting along with us through trade

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Embargo, and the end of Jeffersons term

• Jefferson announces total embargo cuts off
  Britain and France from our goods
• It bombed, Congress repeals it
• Jefferson leaves office bitter and exhausted