CLEP US History 1 2026 – 400 Free Practice Questions to Pass the Exam

The choice of Thomas Jefferson as the one who rejected Hamilton's financial plan is rooted in his strict interpretation of the Constitution. Jefferson, along with others who favored a limited federal government, believed that the powers of Congress should be restricted to those explicitly outlined in the Constitution. He argued that the establishment of a national bank was not one of those powers, as it was not directly mentioned in the Constitution.

This perspective was in direct opposition to Alexander Hamilton's vision, which favored a broad interpretation of federal powers that would allow for the creation of a national bank as a means to stabilize and improve the nation's credit, and to manage the financial system. Jefferson's concern was that a national bank would centralize too much power in the hands of the federal government and could lead to tyranny, as he had a strong preference for agrarianism and state sovereignty.

The context of this debate highlights the early ideological divisions in the young nation, with Jefferson's viewpoint aligning more closely with the agrarian, anti-federalist ideals, while Hamilton's was rooted in a belief in a strong central government with expansive powers.