Although Thomas Jefferson was widely known for wanting to create a small government that was not involved in the economy and did not trade with other countries, some of the things he did during his presidency went against those beliefs. Thomas Jefferson is known for saying that all men are created equal, but he was also a supporter of slave ownership. During his presidency, anyone who was not a white, male landowner had extremely limited rights. In 1803, Jefferson purchased a large amount of land and doubled the size of America. Jefferson was known for being a strict constructionist, but it was never explicitly said in the Constitution that the government was given the right to purchase land, which leads to many questions about whether what he did was considered constitutional or not. Thomas Jefferson also enforced the Embargo Act during his presidency which closed ports in order for British goods to enter the country. The embargo law contradicts his belief that the government stays completely out of the economy. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Even though Thomas Jefferson did not completely stick to his original ideas about how to run government, he still limited it in some ways. One very important thing that Jefferson accomplished was to let the Alien and Sedition Act expire. The law prevented citizens from being able to speak critically or negatively against the country that violated the First Amendment guaranteeing the right to free speech. To maintain a laissez faire economy, Thomas Jefferson ensured that all of the country's debt was repaid to ensure independence. He also reduced domestic taxes, including the whiskey tax, widely despised by the American people. The result of cutting these taxes allowed the economy to function on its own without government assistance as it had intended. I think the most important thing that Thomas Jefferson accomplished during his time as president was to allow people to be able to speak freely against the government without punishment. This is a very important right that many people today take for granted, but without it our lives would be extremely different. He also made a very wise business choice with the Louisiana Purchase, even though it may have gone against his belief that the government was incapable of using implied powers. The quote "all men are created equal" is seen as a very important quote even today but I don't think Jefferson truly believed that all were truly seen as equal as he still deprived slaves and women of many rights.