Tariffs (thread 3), Episode 3: What Would Hamilton Do? Tariffs, Power, and National Industry

This episode imagines how Alexander Hamilton would judge Donald Trump’s tariff agenda, tracing the founding father’s principles on tariffs, industrial policy, and national finance to the challenges of the 21st-century global economy.

Hamilton would sympathize with the goal of protecting strategic industries but would criticize the execution—arguing tariffs must be predictable, targeted, and embedded in a broader plan of credit, investment, and institutional support.