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According to the conventional wisdom, America’s economy has not delivered for most Americans over the past few decades. Pessimistic observers on both sides of the aisle claim that — as a result of globalization, automation, immigration, or elitist policymakers — wages have stagnated, economic mobility has evaporated, and the middle class has hollowed out. And so a new wave of populism has led to politicians ranging from Marco Rubio to Elizabeth Warren to Donald Trump to claim that the American Dream is no longer available to regular Americans.
But, according to Michael Strain, this is not true. While America faces many challenges, our economy still delivers for regular workers, and populists should not try to tear down what isn’t broken. He outlines this argument in his upcoming book, The American Dream Is Not Dead: (But Populism Could Kill It), which will be out at the end of the month.
Michael Strain is the John G. Searle Scholar and director of economic policy studies here at AEI. Previously, he worked for the US Census Bureau and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion, and his essays and op-eds have been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, National Review, and The Weekly Standard.
Learn more: Thomas Philippon: How America gave up on free markets | Alain Bertaud: How markets shape cities | Kimberly Clausing: The progressive case for globalization
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