The document summarizes the major political parties in antebellum America between 1836-1856. The Whig party supported loose construction of the Constitution, nationalists policies like tariffs and internal improvements. The Democratic party advocated for strict construction and opposed federal regulation of slavery. Several other third parties emerged like the Free Soil party in 1848 opposing the spread of slavery and the American party in the 1850s which was anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic. The Republican party was formed in 1854 as an anti-slavery party that attracted former Whigs, northern Democrats and members of other third parties.