Horizon Academy at Marion Oaks
8th Grade US History
Student Name: ____________________________
Period: _________ Date: ___________________
The American System: Henry Clay and Donald Trump
Key Questions to answer:
1. Who was Henry Clay?
2. What were the key provisions and goals of Clay’s American System?
3. What were the key provisions and goals of Trump’s economic policies?
4. How is Clay’s American System similar to Trump’s? How are they different?
Background
Henry Clay and others were elected to Congress in 1811 as “war hawks” congressmen who favored standing up to other countries and even going
to war to defend American rights. This led to the vote to enter the 1st war
as a nation: the War of 1812. But Clay’s plan wasn’t just to stand up to other
countries using the military power but also using economic policies,
especially trade policy, to strengthen America:
“Clay believed that a strong national economy would promote national feeling and reduce
regional conflicts. He developed a plan eventually known as the American System —a series of
measures intended to make the United States economically self-sufficient. To build the economy,
he pushed for a national bank that would provide a single currency, making interstate trade
easier. Clay wanted the money from a protective tariff to be used to improve roads and canals.
These internal improvements would unite the country. Some members of Congress believed that
the Constitution did not permit the federal government to spend money on internal
improvements. Clay argued that the possible gains for the country justified federal action”
(Text, p.302).
A little over 200 years later, Donald Trump was elected
to the US presidency in 2016 on a theme of “Make
 Single currency & National Bank
America Great Again”. His premise was that the US had
 Protective tariff
been taken advantage of by other countries such as
 Improve roads and canals
China and Mexico in trade deals that benefitted those
countries and hurt the American
economy. His plan to improve the American economy includes plans to:
1) cancel and re-negotiate trade deals, create protective tariffs against
countries like China, 2) convince American manufacturers to move their
factories to the US by lowering the costs of doing business (many had moved
to other countries where the costs of labor, transportation and supplies were cheaper) by
lessening the regulations they have to follow, 3) limit illegal immigration which he believes
creates greater financial burdens for state governments (especially in education and
healthcare), and 4) reforming the tax code (and lowering taxes) to put more money in the hands
of consumers. In what ways are these two plans similar? In what ways do they differ? Why?
Clay’s American System