Once the Revolutionary War was over and the Constitution had been worked out and presented to the states for ratification, Jefferson turned his attention to what he and Madison felt was a terrible inadequacy in the new Constitution: it didn’t explicitly stipulate the natural rights of the new nation’s citizens, and it didn’t protect against the rise of new commercial monopolies like the East India Company.
Kapag ang Digmaang Rebolusyonaryo ay sa ibabaw at ang Saligang-Batas ay nagtrabaho out at ipinakita sa mga estado para sa pagpapatibay, Jefferson naka kanyang pansin sa kung ano siya at Madison nadama ay isang kahila-hilakbot kasahulan sa bagong Saligang-Batas: ito ay hindi tahasang magtadhana ang natural na karapatan ng mga mamamayan sa bagong bansa, at ito ay hindi maprotektahan laban sa pagtaas ng bagong commercial monopolies tulad ng East Indya Company.