 He supported President Thomas Jefferson's Embargo Act of 1807 and related enforcement legislation.He was considered a war hawk, and House Speaker Henry Clay, a fellow Kentuckian and leader of the War Hawks in the House, selected him to serve on the House Foreign Relations Committee during the Twelfth Congress (1811–13).Consistent with Clay's expectations, Desha consistently supported the war measures brought before the House, including bills to arm merchant ships, increase the number of regular troops in U.S. Army, and authorize President James Madison to accept volunteer units for military service.