Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Whig Party (United States)" in English language version.
The Whigs were an opposition party formed to challenge Jacksonian Democrats, thereby launching the 'second party system' in America, but they were far from a single-issue party.
The Whig party had "conservative" and "liberal" principles. Whigs portrayed themselves as being the party of order and stability. They sought to protect property, uphold the status quo, and maintain America's culture. These conservative elements were offset by a progressive streak in Whiggish thought. Whigs wanted a dynamic cosmopolitan society, and they believed commercial expansion represented the denouement of the American Revolution.
...The Democratic-Republican and Whig parties are considered the predecessors of today's Democratic and Republican parties, respectively.
A plan to strengthen and unify the nation, the American System was advanced by the Whig Party and a number of leading politicians including Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun and John Quincy Adams.