A. "Thomas Jefferson still survives."
Jefferson and
John Adams had rekindled their friendship through correspondence after they both had left the presidency. Adams and Jefferson had been fierce political rivals. While Adams supported a stronger federal government with the new Constitution, Jefferson was a staunch advocate of state's rights. Ironically, due to the wording of the Constitution, Jefferson became Adams' Vice President in 1796. He then defeated Adams for reelection in the
significant election of 1800. Later in life, Adams vowed to survive until the fiftieth anniversary of the
Declaration of Independence. He and Jefferson formed a friendship as elder statesmen and wrote each other for years. At the age of 92 he died on July 4, 1826. Ironically, Jefferson had died earlier that day.
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