Jefferson had serious prejudices against kings, Britain, and judges. Additionally, Federalists still dominated the justice system, and Adams wanted to ensure that legacy continued. Before leaving office, Adams and his Federalist administrator passed the Judiciary Act of 1801 that employed large numbers of federal judges, all Federalists, to new positions. Republicans interpreted the act as a challenge to weaken state governments and protect the positions of Federalists. Jefferson became active towards Federalist judges and the judiciary and soon the Republicans repealed the Judiciary Act of 1801. With the repeal of the Alien and Sedition Acts and the Judiciary Act the country was ready for bigger changes. As the Federalists left power, non-Federalists began thinking of ways to expand the nation westward. The Federalists wanted to keep things centralized, under one government, and did not seek to expand. Another concern of westward expansion was to drive down resource prices with a fixed amount of resources in the colonies, prices were high and there was concern that discovering more resources would lower prices and limit the power of the country.