This course examines the history of the American political economy from the founding of the United States to the recent Great Recession. Scholars of political economy explore the ways in which politics and public policy intersect with economics, such as the operation of the institutions like the tax system, the first and second Banks of the United States in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and the Federal Reserve after 1913. We will focus on efforts by the U.S. federal government to regulate the American economy and bring economic affairs under the control of the American people and their representatives through a wide variety of political, legal, and institutional mechanisms. A specialized knowledge of economics is not required for this course.