“Nothing in my own understanding of the presidency gives the occupant of that office that right or role.”
Tune in to your local public radio or join the 1776 Club to hear this episode of What Would Thomas Jefferson Do?
Federal Law Enforcement
“Nothing in my own understanding of the presidency gives the occupant of that office that right or role.”
Tune in to your local public radio or join the 1776 Club to hear this episode of What Would Thomas Jefferson Do?
Thomas Jefferson practiced law from 1767 until early 1774. Much of his work involved land disputes, however one case in April of 1770 found him acting pro bono defending Samuel Howell, a mixed-race man being held as an indentured servant because his grandmother was white and his grandfather black. He lost the case, but argued that “under the law of nature, all men are born free.” This week Jefferson (as portrayed by humanities scholar Clay S. Jenkinson) answers questions submitted to him by an incarcerated person.
Joseph Ellis and Clay Jenkinson revisit their debate about who the “Indispensable Man” of the American Revolution truly was. We share listener comments about the debate and answer additional questions sent in, including a request for discussion about the history of the women’s rights movement, Jefferson’s subpoena during the Burr trial and how slavery affected the economy of the southern states.
"Nothing in my own understanding of the presidency gives the occupant of that office that right or role."
— Clay S. Jenkinson portraying Thomas Jefferson
This week's guest host Catherine Jenkinson speaks with President Jefferson about incarceration policies in early and present day America. Jefferson was a reformist, and revised the entire law code of Virginia. Jefferson was enamored with the work of Cesare Beccaria, who wrote the 1764 treatise On Crimes and Punishments.