ABSTRACT
The United States owes its independence in part to the reasonably clear-cut industrial policies of the British government in the 17th and 18th centuries. Resources helped shape the American system. Abundant waterpower encouraged the use of machinery; wood could be used on a scale not possible in Europe. The expansion of aluminum production was handled so as to increase competition; novel methods of shipbuilding challenged the established yards. Steel, the other basic industry that has led the US government into the rudiments of an industrial policy, presents quite a contrast to automobiles. There were indications that the steel company was as interested in pressing for action by the US government as it was in checking imports. The agenda of future industrial policy issues for the United States sounds very inward looking. The structure of production, investment and technology, job security and labor flexibility, regulation and deregulation, the impact of environmental controls on productivity and coal mining require domestic solutions.
