Clay Jenkinson believes that Thomas Jefferson was a truly extraordinary and indispensable man whose intellect and foundational American values remain essential to understanding the country today.

“Now, he's really a tremendously extraordinary man and if there's any figure in our history who is truly a Renaissance man, can arguably be put in the same paragraph with someone like Leonardo da Vinci, it's Thomas Jefferson.”

She holds a negative view of Thomas Jefferson.

“I'm not a fan of Thomas Jefferson.”

Thomas Jefferson does not deserve to be treated with kid gloves when discussing his historical legacy.

“It was about how terrible Thomas Jefferson is? Well, he he actually did not get kid gloves.”

Thomas Jefferson is the most effective political genius among the founding fathers due to his success in obtaining and keeping power.

“And I think you could say that if um you know aptitude for politics is to be measured by success in the winning and the keeping of power then Jefferson is the great political genius among the founding fathers”

Jefferson's reputation is contested because he is viewed by some as both a great hero and the personification of America's original sin.

“to many people in America, including I would imagine a large proportion of our own American listeners, he remains a great hero for all the reasons that you've described. And yet there are others including perhaps some people who may listen to the show who say no actually the way we should look at Th”