Excerpt from Thomas Jefferson’s Second Inaugural Address On taking this station on a former occasion, I declared the principles on which I believed it my duty to administer the affairs of our commonwealth. My conscience tells me that I have, on every occasion, acted up to that declaration, according to its obvious import, and to the understanding of every candid mind.

In the transaction of your foreign affairs, we have endeavored to cultivate the friendship of all nations, and especially of those with which we have the most important relations. We have done them justice on all occasions, favored where favor was lawful, and cherished mutual interests and intercourse on fair and equal terms. We are firmly convinced, and we act on that conviction, that with nations, as with individuals, our interests soundly calculated, will ever be found inseparable from our moral duties. . .

3
Select the correct answer.
Jefferson delivered his second inaugural address to an audience at a time when the political circumstances were changing significantly. How does the underlined phrase in the excerpt address the concerns of that audience?

A.
It reassures the audience by highlighting Jefferson's determination to seek the friendship of all other nations.
B.
It empathizes with the audience's concerns by highlighting Jefferson's respect for the rights of citizens.
C.
It reassures the audience by highlighting Jefferson's determination to create foreign alliances that are both beneficial and just.
D.
It empathizes with the audience's concerns by highlighting Jefferson's stance on the new amendments made prior to his election.