He also replaced any lower-ranking Federalist appointees who engaged in misconduct or partisan behavior. Jefferson's refusal to call for a complete replacement of federal appointees under a 'spoils system' was followed by his successors until the election of Andrew Jackson in 1828. Jefferson's ultimate goal was to abolish the national debt, which he believed to be inherently dangerous and immoral. At the end of his two terms, Jefferson had lowered the national debt from $83 million to $57 million. In 1806, believing that the country would soon abolish its national debt, Jefferson proposed enlarging the army and passing a constitutional amendment to explicitly allow Congress to spend funds on internal improvements and education, but these proposals were not acted on by Congress. That same year, Congress authorized the construction of the National Road, a route designed to connect the East Coast to St. Louis, although construction on the road did not begin until 1811.
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