The Louisiana Purchase
The purchasing of the Louisiana territory was not as easy of a business transaction as one might think. It was a very rushed, stressful process that caused President Thomas Jefferson a considerable amount of mental and emotional anguish. The problem that was the Louisiana purchase can be broken into three parts: Jefferson's dilemma, Jefferson's decision, and the consequences. When the opportunity to purchase the Louisiana territory presented itself, Jefferson could not pass it up. However, being a strict constructionist, Jefferson strongly felt that any powers not specifically given to the federal government were reserved for the states. Obtaining the Louisiana territory would be very beneficial to the growing United States, but Jefferson opposed "manipulating
Not surprisingly, the treaty quickly passed and the Louisiana territory belonged to the United States, doubling its size. Jefferson specifically said that congress should just approve the treaty "without talking. He decided to purchase the Louisiana territory from France. Jefferson's dilemma was tough, his decision hard, and the consequences hard felt. However, he still needed two thirds of the Senate and a majority of the House to approve his treaty. Jefferson set an example that Presidents after him would follow. " The treaty had to be made "now," leaving congress no time to discuss it. If a decision was not made soon, Jefferson would lose the opportunity all together. " Jefferson stated with his actions that, "if time was of the essence, then the president and Congress could ignore, perhaps violate, the Constitution if they considered it to be in the national interest. So Jefferson proposed the idea of possibly making an amendment to the constitution that made it possible for the president to purchase land for the United States. Jefferson finally made a decision. The problem with this idea was time. Although the addition of the Louisiana territory to the United States was a good thing, one can not overlook the dangers of President Thomas Jefferson's actions. Jefferson proved that the president could find in the constitution, "virtually any power he needed to carry out the most expansive foreign policy, especially if his party commanded a majority in Congress. It would take over three months for the amendment to be approved by the House, Senate, and appropriate number of states.
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