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Thomas Jefferson's Moral Dilemmas: The Louisiana Purchase

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The Louisiana Purchase posed several significant moral dilemmas for President Thomas Jefferson; among these were his republican ideals, the unconstitutionality of the acquisition of foreign land, and the nation’s growth and economic prosperity.
Thomas Jefferson challenged his own political ideology with the purchase of the Louisiana territory. This was an internal moral dilemma that Jefferson would have to sacrifice for the advancement of the young country. Thomas Jefferson was a republicans republican; he was a true antifederalist to the bone who was a strict interpreter of the United States Constitution. What really ripped him in two was that he was about to regurgitate the same argument Alexander Hamilton used to justify the establishment …show more content…
There was no trace of or indication in the constitution that authorized the government to acquire new territory. Thomas Jefferson was a man who firmly believed in states’ rights and a weak central government. Ironically he was about to make one of the biggest government move of his presidency that would double the size of the country. According to a letter from President Jefferson to John C. Breckinridge, Jefferson knew that there was no provision in the constitution that gave the president or the government the power to acquire foreign land and mentioned, “The Constitution has made no provision for our holding foreign territory, still less for incorporating foreign nations into our Union.”. Jefferson had to set aside his political beliefs that made him who he was and proceeded with the Louisiana Purchase knowing that this action went past what the Constitution gave him the power to do as President. As a strict interpreter, Jefferson had to set aside his political ideals and expand the presidential power to acquire the Louisiana Territory from France. This moral dilemma of doing what is best for the country went against his morals, for this was something a strict Constitutionalist would never allow happening but Jefferson was determined to do what was best for the

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