Final answer:
Jefferson refuted the charge by listing the ways in which the British monarch had abused his power and failed in his duties to his subjects.
Step-by-step explanation:
Jefferson refuted the possible charge that the colonists should have tried to solve their problems by less drastic means by listing the ways in which the British monarch had abused his power and failed in his duties to his subjects. He argued that the king had taxed the colonists without their consent, interfered with their trade, denied them the right to trial by jury, and deprived them of their right to self-government. By highlighting these intrusions on their rights, Jefferson justified the colonists' decision to seek independence through the more drastic means of declaring independence and founding a new government.