Argumentative Essay On Louisiana Purchase
Every school child learns at an early age of the Louisiana Purchase. They learn simply of Thomas Jeffersons great real estate deal that more than doubled the size of the young United States. What they do not learn, however, is of the intense debate in congress, which nearly put the brakes on Jeffersons plan; or of the underhanded financial deals the Jefferson made while congress bickered in order to come up with the funding for the purchase; or of the decisions Jefferson made that seemingly compromised some of his strongest beliefs. It is these details that tell the real story of the Louisiana Purchase.
The events that led up to the Louisiana Purchase are themselves grounded in controversy. Late in the 1790s, Spain secretly ceded the Louisiana …show more content…
That whole time, they continued to debate whether the President had the right to make such a purchase. After October of 1803, congress began debating the details on governing the territory. They could not decide whether or not it would be given the same rights as the states, and whether or not the citizens should be allowed to govern themselves. They also debated the exact boundaries of the purchase and whether the purchase was constitutional. Much of the time debating was spent on An Act erecting Louisiana into two Territories and providing for the Temporary Government thereof. The other bill that took a very long time to get through congress was An act giving effect to the laws of the United States within the Territories ceded to the United States by the treaty of the thirtieth of April, one thousand eight hundred and three, between the United States and the French Republic, and for other purposes. Also, Thomas Jefferson himself requested congress to discuss the fact that rich landowners were claiming and monopolizing all the land in the new territitory. One act that actually helped with funding the purchase was passed on March 3, 1804, which said all revenues and taxes from the new territory would be put into the United States Treasury, rather than a separate treasury for the
The events that led up to the Louisiana Purchase are themselves grounded in controversy. Late in the 1790s, Spain secretly ceded the Louisiana …show more content…
That whole time, they continued to debate whether the President had the right to make such a purchase. After October of 1803, congress began debating the details on governing the territory. They could not decide whether or not it would be given the same rights as the states, and whether or not the citizens should be allowed to govern themselves. They also debated the exact boundaries of the purchase and whether the purchase was constitutional. Much of the time debating was spent on An Act erecting Louisiana into two Territories and providing for the Temporary Government thereof. The other bill that took a very long time to get through congress was An act giving effect to the laws of the United States within the Territories ceded to the United States by the treaty of the thirtieth of April, one thousand eight hundred and three, between the United States and the French Republic, and for other purposes. Also, Thomas Jefferson himself requested congress to discuss the fact that rich landowners were claiming and monopolizing all the land in the new territitory. One act that actually helped with funding the purchase was passed on March 3, 1804, which said all revenues and taxes from the new territory would be put into the United States Treasury, rather than a separate treasury for the