The Presidency of Thomas Jefferson: Part I

Thomas Jefferson 1801 – 1809 Democratic-Republican Graduate of the College of William & Mary Author of the Declaration of Independence Former Governor of Virginia, Secretary of State, U.S. Ambassador to France, and Vice-President to Adams Both he and John Adams died on July 4, 1826 – 50 years to the day after signing the Declaration of Independence!

The Election of 1800 The Alien & Sedition Acts, coupled with an increase in taxes, had made President John Adams unpopular The Democratic-Republicans won the 1800 election, but due to a quirk in the Electoral College, there was a tie between their intended president, Thomas Jefferson, and their intended vice-president, Aaron Burr When no candidate has a majority of the electoral votes, the House of Representatives casts the deciding vote

Jefferson or Burr? Aaron Burr Federalists controlled the House of Representatives, so they had to choose between Republicans Jefferson and Burr Federalist leader Alexander Hamilton detested Burr, but the House vote was deadlocked because Jefferson had made many enemies amongst the Federalists Finally, Jefferson promised to keep Federalist government employees and Hamilton’s economic system; this got him the one vote he needed to break the tie Aaron Burr

Amendment XII (1804) The Jefferson-Burr controversy led to a change in the Constitutional rules for electing the president and vice-president Old rules – whoever got the most votes for president won, whoever got the second most votes became vice-president New rules – presidential candidates must choose a vice-presidential running mate and they are elected together as a “ticket”

The Peaceful Revolution The Federalists controlled the Presidency, Congress, the Federal Courts, and the military in 1800, and could have refused to recognize the results of the election – instead, they chose to honor the election’s results and uphold the Constitution This first transition of power from one political party (the Federalists) to another (the Democratic-Republicans) is sometimes called “The Peaceful Revolution”

Inauguration Jefferson was the first president to be inaugurated in Washington To set the tone for what he wanted his presidency to stand for, Jefferson refused to ride in a carriage to the Capitol, choosing instead to walk A bitter John Adams refused to attend the inauguration Jefferson took a conciliatory tone in his speech, saying “We are all Republicans, we are all Federalists”

Few Immediate Changes Jefferson felt that Federalist diplomats under Washington and Adams had signed good treaties with England, Spain, & France, and had kept the U.S. out of war. He also conceded that Hamilton’s Bank of the United States was helping to get the country out of debt and create economic stability Jefferson also kept his promise to not dismiss Federalist bureaucrats within the government

The Midnight Judges Just before the transition of power, however, the Federalist Congress had passed the Judiciary Act of 1801, creating 16 new federal judgeships In the days before leaving office, Adams signed letters appointing Federalists to fill these new life-long positions

Jefferson Reacts James Madison Upon taking office, Jefferson ordered his Secretary of State, James Madison, to “lose” the “Midnight Judges” commissions; without the required paperwork, the judges could not take office Angry that they were being blocked by Madison, the judges sued the executive in federal court

William Marbury William Marbury, who had been appointed Justice of the Peace for the District of Columbia, appealed to the Supreme Court seeking an order to compel Madison to produce his commission

Marbury v. Madison The Supreme Court found that, while Madison’s actions were illegal and the judges had a right to be seated, the Supreme Court did not have authority over the case because the Judiciary Act of 1789, which had allowed Marbury to bring the case directly to the Supreme Court, was in conflict with the Constitution and, therefore, void This decision established the precedent of judicial review, or the idea that the Supreme Court can decide whether laws violate the Constitution and should be “struck down”