Which plan focused on a strong central bank, internal improvements, and a protective tariff?

• A. Nullification Doctrine
• B. Spoils System
• C. American System
• D. Monroe Doctrine

Answer: (C)

The plan described is an early 19th‑century economic nationalism idea that centers on unifying and strengthening the national economy. It champions a strong central bank to stabilize money and credit, tariffs to protect and promote domestic industry, and federal funding for internal improvements like roads and canals to knit the regions together. This combination is exactly what the American System proposed, a program associated with Henry Clay in the 1820s.

Why this fits: a central bank provides a stable currency and credit system; protective tariffs shield new American manufacturers from foreign competition; and federally funded internal improvements facilitate trade and travel across the growing nation, tying the North, South, and West into one economic system.

The other ideas focus on different aims: the Nullification Doctrine centers on states’ rights to overrule federal laws, not on economic policy or infrastructure; the Spoils System deals with rewarding political supporters with government jobs; the Monroe Doctrine is a foreign policy stance toward European powers in the Western Hemisphere.