Our judges are as honest as other men, and not more so. They have, with others, the same passions for party, for power, and the privilege of their corps [group of people]..
and their power the more dangerous as they are in office for life, and not responsible, as the other functionaries
are, to the elective control.
-Thomas Jefferson, Letter to William Charles Jarvis, Sept. 28, 1820
This excerpt comes from a letter Jefferson wrote in response to the Supreme Court's decision on Marbury v. Madison. What was Jefferson's greatest concern?
(1 point)
• He was concerned that the decision gave the Supreme Court too much authority.
• He was concerned by the fact that judges were not elected.
• He was concerned that judges could be easily influenced by political parties
• He was concerned that the decision set a dangerous precedent for cases heard by the Supreme Court.
Based on the given excerpt, Jefferson's greatest concern was that judges could be easily influenced by political parties.
Jefferson's greatest concern, as stated in the excerpt, was that judges could be easily influenced by political parties.
To determine Jefferson's greatest concern, we can examine the given excerpt from his letter. According to the text, he expresses concerns about the judges having the same passions for party, power, and privilege as other men. He also states that their power is more dangerous because they hold office for life and are not responsible to the elective control.
From this information, we can conclude that Jefferson's greatest concern was that judges could be easily influenced by political parties. He believed that their passions and the fact that they held office for life made them more susceptible to bias and less accountable for their actions. Therefore, the correct answer is: He was concerned that judges could be easily influenced by political parties.