The Presidents #3: Thomas Jefferson

[Ardent15]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson

Discuss him and his Presidency.

[kestrel91316]

1. He rewrote the Bible. That's all I need to know about the man to give him a WIN.

Oh, and he loved to grow fruits and veggies out at Monticello. As a gardener I can relate to that.

[denimgirly]

3. +10

Reading his bio now...very interesting person! LOL about the Bible...great stuff!

[Thothmes]

7. You mean his slaves at Montecello planted, weeded, and

harvested the fruit and veggies, dont you.

[grantcart]

10. an interesting social life

[imnKOgnito]

2. Well, he couldn't have been too terribly important

If they're rewriting him out of the textbooks.

[Zomby Woof]

4. First term: Brilliant; Second term: Unmitigated disaster

The Embargo Act of 1807, enacted two years before Jefferson's second term expired, is largely forgotten today, but in its time, Jefferson's experiment plunged the nation into its worst economic catastrophe thus far in its short history, the worst perhaps until 1929. It was intended as a concrete display of neutrality so that the U.S. wouldn't be dragged into the Napoleon's wars and misadventures. Ships couldn't even leave ports. New England's textile business thrived without British competition, but prosperity in that sphere was offset by the lack of just about every other basic necessity. Unrest grew so widespread, that the states of that region nearly seceded (see? it's not just a southern thing). Unable to trade with Britain or France, or anyone else, food rotted on piers, manufactured goods sat useless. Farmers in both the north and south had food distribution troubles, and soon an underground 'black market' economy took hold. Smuggling and piracy with high profiteering became the norm.

Still, the ruin was greater than the riches, and Jefferson left office one of the least popular presidents of all time. His reputation did not recover until the Jacksonian era, when reverence for the founders and founding documents gave them mythic stature.

[ShadowLiberal]

16. Agreed, if almost anyone else did what he did in his 2nd term they'd be ranked much lower

If anyone but a founding father who was already famous for writing some of our nations more sacred/important documents did the Embargo act then they would have gone down as one of the worst presidents in history for screwing up the economy so bad with such a stupid policy (which on top of that failed to achieve it's intended goal of preventing a war with Britain).

There's three reasons, two of which were dumb luck by Jefferson, that keep Jefferson as often being ranked in the top 10 best presidents.

1) What Jefferson did as a founding father before being president

2) The Louisiana purchase (Jefferson only tried to buy a small part of the land he bought, the part with the state of Louisiana for control of the ports at New Orleans, his ambassadors got the offer for the whole thing when they went to negotiate for it).

3) The Federalist party falling apart so badly and becoming so weak that despite the how bad Jefferson's Embargo act screwed up the economy, Jefferson's party was STILL better positioned in the next election, which let someone from Jefferson's party easily win the next election. The Federalists were just that weak, and in that much of a death spiral, they didn't last long as a political party.

But still, despite all this, Jefferson doesn't deserve to be bashed for his founding father achievements, or written out of the book like Texas thinks, but his presidency wasn't as rosy as the history books paint it.

[boppers]

5. His native american policy was AWFUL.

Otherwise, some very interesting things came from him that we still revere today.

[FrenchieCat]

6. He had Black babies, and the RW found out about it,

and so they wrote him out of the history books?

[dsc]

20. actually it is his religious views not his dalliances with slaves that is their problem

His deist beliefs and strong belief in seperation of church and state. I don't think Strom Thurmond, who also had a child by a black woman, will be read out of Texas school books anytime soon.

[Dr Morbius]

8. A brilliant but inconsistent man.

Thomas Jefferson played violin and created architecture of surpassing beauty. He also recognized the evils of slavery but kept slaves for the next fifty years. He advocated frugal government but spent so much that he died some $200,000 in debt, and in 1826 $200,000 was still a lot of money. His vision of government during the Washington administration would never have allowed the President to purchase territory, but his inner pragmatic politician changed his mind quickly when Louisiana became available.

Jack Kennedy once held a dinner for Nobel Laureates, and remarked that the White House had never seen such an assemblage of genius since Thomas Jefferson dined alone. Kennedy had that kind of dramatic flair, but his comment is more or less spot on. Jefferson was a genius, easily the most brilliant man to ever hold the Presidency. He was an American Leonardo da Vinci, except that I don't think Jefferson was gay. And yet his inconsistencies nag. Not the greatest American or greatest President, but great in both senses.

[Ardent15]

9. Kick for those who didn't see it

nt

[Writer]

11. I would have had sex with Thomas Jefferson.

His brilliance and inventiveness would have been like abstract pornography. Yes, indeed.

[proteus_lives]

12. A true genius.

Men like him don't come around very often.

[Capt. America]

13. As a freshman member of the VA House of Burgesses he introduced a bill to ban the importation of

slaves. Needless to say, it didn't work.

He is a true giant in the American pantheon. He represents one half of American political thought and Hamilton the other.

[DCofVA]

14. He was the first liberal President, and he is still my favorite

He was so proud of his Statute for Religious Freedom, ( or what I like to call the “freedom from religion act.”) that he had it put in his epitaph. He also wrote the “Declaration of Independence.”

[SpartanDem]

19. Jefferson a liberal?

he was a big supporters of "states rights" Jefferson would be against the expansions of federal power that Democrats have traditionally supported, hated the marbury v. madison decision that established the precedent of judicial review Thomas Jefferson sounds like Ron Paul to me.

[Dappleganger]

23. Yes, he was no Hamilton.

Those two views were diametrically opposed--it's a good idea to read up on them regularly.

[Ter]

22. He was not a liberal

He was a libertarian.

[Odin2005]

15. He is thought to have had Asperger's Syndrome.

And based on the biographies this Aspie's read, I believe it. The guy was a genius.

[salguine]

17. I've always thought one of the most interesting things about Jefferson was that he

had three things that he specifically wanted listed as his proudest achievements on his headstone. The fact that he was twice elected and served as President of the United States wasn't one of them. I realize that in his day the office had not yet acquired the cachet that it now has, but still.

[FarLeftRage]

18. And according to a freeper ex-friend...

He was the first personification of "Jeffersonian Democracy", raygun was the second and gee dumbfuckya was the most recent personification of "Jeffersonian Democracy"...

[craigmatic]

21. Thomas Jefferson was the Bill Clinton/ JFK of his day n/t