Governing Growth: US Industrial Policy from Hamilton to Trump

In this volume covering the long sweep of US industrial policy, Marco R. Di Tommaso and Vinod K. Aggarwal contextualize the current moment of industrial policy and its possible consequences. In an era marked by international tension and global challenges, governments have responded by increasing their focus on industrial policy to enhance certain economic sectors. The United States is often seen to be a free-market economy lacking significant government intervention. However, the use of industrial policy in the United States is far from new. The American government has long played an essential role in industrialization from Hamilton's plan for manufacturing to Biden's turn to industrial policy in green industries and semiconductors and to Trump's tariff policies. In Governing Growth, Marco R. Di Tommaso and Vinod K. Aggarwal chart this history of American industrial policy spanning from the Founding Fathers to Donald Trump's current presidency. They explore the "pre-history" of American industrial policy, tracking how the government balanced industry and societal needs up until the crisis of the 1970s. Pointing to the parallels between Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, Di Tommaso and Aggarwal identify the pivot to neoliberalism in the 1980s. Even in this climate, they point out that there remained a significant gap between rhetoric promoting free trade and protectionist policies. Finally, they compare the recent presidencies of Obama, Biden, and Trump, exploring how the vastly different backgrounds, approaches, and ideologies of these politicians affected US industrial policy. Di Tommaso and Aggarwal speak to the importance of understanding burgeoning industrial policy around the world through a historical lens, and ultimately the book also offers context to Trump's unique approach to trade protection and industrial policy and the likely consequences.