What were the general economic conditions of this time period described in this chapter? How did the two parties (Whigs-then-Republicans and Democrats) of the time interpret and use the economic conditions in their political pursuits? Which party is closely aligned with the laissez-faire liberalism that we talked about when reading Polanyi? How did they leverage this idea of liberalism to their advantage?

From "The Party-Democratic Period: 1830s to 1930s" of Gregory C. Leavitt's book Class Conflict: The Pursuit and History of American Justice