Thomas Jefferson used a loose interpretation of the United States Constitution when he

(1) negotiated the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803

(2) asked Congress to increase the size of the United States Navy

(3) ran for a second term as president

(4) opposed the reelection of John Adams in 1800

The correct answer is (1) : negotiated the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France in 1803

Explanation:

The Louisiana Purchase Treaty would not be final until it was ratified by the Senate, funded by the House of Representatives and signed by the President but Jefferson had reservations about its constitutionality. because he always had the conviction that the powers of the federal government should be strictly interpreted. In fact, Article IV of the Constitution says that new states could be added, but there were no rules to take over foreign territories, so Jefferson argued that a constitutional amendment was needed. He wrote in 1803: "The General Government has no powers, but as the Constitution gives it ... it has not given it the power to own foreign territory, let alone incorporate it into the Union."

Jefferson drafted an amendment that would authorize Louisiana's purchase retroactively. But members of Jefferson's cabinet argued against the need for an amendment and the Senate ratified the treaty in October 1803.

Jefferson may have had to compromise his most sacred principles for the Louisiana Purchase to advance. But later he described the Purchase as a "great achievement." He wrote in 1810: "It is up to those who accept large positions to take risks on large occasions."