America has had renowned leaders such as George Washington and John Adams, whose leadership significantly impacted the American people. When Thomas Jefferson was inaugurated in 1801, the occasion resulted in a more democratic country, which led to established economic freedom, known as the ‘republican simplicity’ (Shi and Tindall 330). This expanded the nation’s economy as everyone could trade their different products across different states. Apart from providing the opportunity for businesses, the democratic process also ensured that various products could be availed where they were needed for industrial production. During his administration, he set more laws, which led to equality among republicans and federalists, thereby reconciling them. This paper focuses on republican simplicity following the market revolution.
President Jefferson focused mainly on reducing the national debt that his predecessors introduced; He succeeded in lowering customs taxes and government spending in every possible way. Further, he reduced the size of the navy, thereby reducing the national debt considerably. He also signed the Embargo Act of 1807, a law that banned American ships from leaving their ports until Britain and France’s grabbing was stopped (Shi and Tindall 344). This move saw the American economy declining more than that of Britain and France, and, as a result, the Act was repealed. The decline of the American economy transformed significantly after the market revolution, as mass production and factories displaced independent artisans. Farms no longer produced goods for local markets, which were shipped to international markets through inexpensive transportation, contrary to president Jefferson’s era.
President Jefferson was an advocate of freedom; he liberated Americans from personal and governmental oppression. He felt that policies inducted before his tenure had led to a reduction in individual liberties and unnecessary government expansion and put the state into the hands of businessmen and merchants. He corrected the problems by revising the laws and reducing the expenses. The republican simplicity is not an absolute concept since the subsequent leadership invalidated it after President Thomas Jefferson’s tenure. Thus, Americans returned to their usual ideologies as republicans and democrats (Shi and Tindall 471). Market revolution also led to changes in some laws as there were personal wealth and economic growth with developing lower-class poverty as many Americans labored for low wages.
President Jefferson committed to republican simplicity by ensuring no bill was imposed on Congress, thus refusing to open congressional drafts on policy grounds. He only sent the Congress messages, which lasted until Woodrow’s tenure, when he publicly addressed Congress and called for legislation. In this case, republican simplicity only expired during Woodrow’s Presidency, when he introduced progressive ideas (Shi and Tindall 946). Furthermore, republican simplicity is not valid where it weakened the control of Federalists regarding the federal judiciary by making sure that no republican served as a federal judge.
President Jefferson’s commitment to republican simplicity was evident in how he emphasized the economy in government. He was also convinced that land ownership and labor on earth were the foundation of the republican government. In that regard, he persuaded Congress to reduce public land prices and extend credit to buyers to motivate them to own land and encourage Western settlement (Shi and Tindall 583). This was true as it saw many people settling, and land prices and houses were on the lower side for a long time.
President Jefferson’s administration oversaw a reduction in federal spending. This changed the aftermarket revolution significantly as the state governments funded various transportation improvements, thereby increasing the annual federal expenditures to an average of $ 1323000 by Jackson’s presidency. State legislature pumped more money into the economy by chattering more banks which later led to the economic crisis. With the market revolution, owning acres of land was controlled through inheritance to the first son, and property qualifications were abolished with a limited franchise to the whites. Election control was left to individual states, a move that led to unfair voting practices. Additionally, the market revolution saw the political rights of those who did not own property advance; most white men without property were franchised, while African Americans, non-English speakers, native Americans, and those in the age bracket of 18-21 had to fight for the right to vote.
Work Cited
Shi, David E., and George Brown Tindall. America: A Narrative History. WW Norton & Company, 2016.