Before it was a busy city, Washington, D.C. was mostly unused land. Who owned the land? How did the federal government acquire this land? Analysis of government power related to Washington D.C. begins before the first day of its construction. Upon studying multiple letters written by Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, and the architect of the city, Pierre L'Enfant, one can see these leaders testing the limits of the newly established government when trying to purchase the desired land for the capital. Instances of federal overreach along with imbalanced Presidential power are prevalent when examining how the government acquired the necessary land.

Determining a LocationDeciding where to place the capital city was no easy task for the leaders of the new nation. While Washington and Jefferson envisioned a city along the Potomac, the location had to be approved by Congress. Debates over location reveal the stirring fears among Congress—would an unequal distance between the northern and southern states create an imbalance of power? If a location that was difficult to travel to was selected, would too much power be given to too few individuals? (Annals of Congress 1790, 1660-1661). Representative Alexander White from Virginia warned that the latter "is a situation in which we never wish to see" (Annals of Congress 1790, 1660-1661). Many believed that a non-central capital would result in "disunion, ambition, and rivalship" (Annals of Congress 1790, 1660-1661). Clearly, before a location was even decided, the capital sparked concerns over power and influence within the new republic. As a representative, James Madison helped Jefferson and Washington realize their goal of a Potomac location by arguing that "as to centrality, the best evidence we have at this time in favor of the Potomac is the different traveling of the members," citing that the mileage north and south of the Potomac was roughly equal (Annals of Congress 1790, 1660-1661). 

Funding Without Congressional AppropriationsIn a September 1790 letter to Washington, Jefferson explains how the federal government will acquire the necessary acres for building. He states that proprietors “would give [acres] up for the use of the U.S. on condition they should receive the double of their value” (Founders, September 14, 1790). Further, Jefferson writes that he believes that the Maryland assembly would “force the consent” of proprietors unwilling to give up their land (Founders, September 14, 1790). But Jefferson has concerns over how the new government may be perceived using such force—this may be going “farther than is necessary” to secure the needed lands (Founders, September 14, 1790). Despite Jefferson’s concern over governmental overreach, Jefferson seems to recommend dealing with the purchase of land without influence from Congress. In particular, Jefferson writes that "it would be dangerous to rely on any aids from Congress" (Founders, September 14, 1790). Here, Jefferson reports the government must act quickly to “secure the Federal seat on the Patowmack” (Founders, September 14, 1790). He also suggests that relying on Congress for funding may not be the most efficient method of securing that land. The process of receiving appropriations from Congress could potentially take too long and they would risk losing the desired land. From the long debates over the location of the capital, it can be assumed that there would also be lengthy debates over how much money to appropriate and over which land that money would go towards. Yet, to the contrary, Jefferson insists that the President act quickly, without keeping Congress involved in the decision making process. We can see that in the early days of planning, the Executive branch began to put its own interests above informing the Congress.