The Lincoln Project (TLP) is a tribe of GOP political consultants created in advance of the November 2020 election. Its immediate objective was to convince right-leaning-independent and GOP voters in the swing states to vote for Biden and Democratic Senate candidates. Its broader aim, one that continues after this election, is to protect American democracy. Democracy for TLP is one that contains strong democratic institutions (e.g., voting by all, a Justice Department independent of politics) and fulfills the promise of our nation. Steve Bannon (Trump’s 2016 election advisor) said that if TLP could turn 4% of GOP voters to Biden, Trump would lose in 2020. So, 4% became TLP’s key performance indicator. I would suggest a higher benchmark as 4% of GOP voters voted for Hillary in 2016, according to Pew Center research. Did TLP get more than 4% of the GOP…
The economic issues facing our nation require political cooperation, not divisivenesss.
Biden is our President-elect and one thing is certain: Whatever the ultimate balance of power in the US Senate, we do not need four more years of a stalemate. The major economic issues facing our country require a US Congress that can listen, learn, debate, and collaborate with the President to find solutions that advance the well-being of our nation. What are our major economic issues? The pandemic. The exponential growth rate in COVID virus cases (and with it, ICU bed usage and deaths) is slowing down our economic growth while at the same time increasing the deficit, food shortages, evictions, anxiety, and business bankruptcies, small and large. Our excess death date and virus incidence proved we are not managing the pandemic effectively. We need the President and Congress to act on Federal powers to drive manufacturing to support Covid-fighting efforts so that…
We need more not less diversity training
President Trump has ordered Federal Agencies and their contractors (i.e., a significant percentage of American businesses) to halt diversity training that builds from Critical Race Theory. Words you are likely familiar with – such as unconscious bias – emerge from this theory, which argues that racism is ingrained in American society’s fabric and system, not merely in individual people. This system better explains societal outcomes than does individual behavior. Business is rightfully pushing back against Trump’s order, as efforts to encourage diversity and welcoming cultures have led to more successful talent attraction and retention and more innovative cultures. Trump’s action aims to appeal to his political base, and while it may be right politically, it is wrong on other levels. To understand, I encourage you to read Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. In the book, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson comments: “Caste…
Why we should all be depressed, not just Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama is experiencing mild depression. If she can feel depressed, I feel better about my own malaise, especially about the state of the US economy. Without additional fiscal stimulus, we will experience an economic depression, a situation where the economy lacks its own ability to recover. There are other things to feel terrible about – unnecessary deaths, inequality, school-age children falling behind, and another generation likely to incur long-term effects from sustained, high unemployment. All these painful experiences are worsened as the economy tanks further. It’s helpful to remember Macroeconomics 101. The level of our nation’s Gross Domestic Product (essentially our national income) depends on the addition of four terms. Consumption of disposable goods like food, entertainment, and clothing. It is the dominant majority of our GDP, coming in at about 69% in Q2 of 2020 GDP. Government spending on things like…
Should businesses care about economic inequality beyond justice considerations?
Today is scary. Our lizard brains want to hold tighter onto what we have. But embracing a spirit of abundance and thinking about “we, united” versus “me, safe in my status” is exactly what is needed by business owners and leaders. Why should leaders worry about inequality beyond justice considerations? GDP growth. We live in a consumer-driven economy. Without a growing middle class, consumption will continue to grow slowly, as the wealthy have much lower propensities to spend, even in today’s luxury branded world. Today, the most prosperous people secure an astoundingly large and rising share of national income, while the worst-off show little to no growth in income (despite rising housing, medical, and education costs). The middle class is disappearing. Global data shows nations with more equitable income distributions have more rapid real economic growth. Young people’s inability to afford homes and…
The price of profits
Today’s youth pose burning questions about capitalism. For examples: How is it that we live in a country of extraordinary wealth but have low ratings on many societal quality-of-life measures, like infant mortality, affordable housing, food insecurity, and maternal health? How do we continue to abide by a system that generates untold wealth while risking natural calamities due to climate change? Wasn’t the point of technology to let us work less and live more freely? Instead, technology has created increased productivity that benefited incomes for the few at the top while the rest of us can’t even afford health care and a roof over our heads as gig workers. I studied economics after asking myself, “How is all this order – jobs, incomes, homes, and goods – created? What makes it all seemingly work?” I learned that capitalism is the mechanism that incentivizes…
An “inside-baseball” economic concept suddenly matters to all of us
Just a month ago, restaurants across the nation were closing their doors (at least to in-house dining). Pick one in your city and think about the ripple effects of its closing: It’s not just the restaurant owners whose income has fallen. The shutdown is also affecting the earnings of the staff, the food and alcohol distributors, the bakery, the linen service provider, the paper products supplier, the cleaning service, and the marketing agency that created ads for the restaurant. Plans with an architectural firm for a remodel are on hold, as is the contract with the general contractor and selected sub-contractors. The waiters, waitresses, and kitchen staff have stopped buying clothing and household furnishings. The farmers have stopped buying farm equipment. The marketing agency has laid off its staff, who have cut back their unnecessary spending. The beer manufacturers are dumping their beer…
Note to progressives: Drop the word socialism and you’ll win more voters
Bernie Sanders is a good man who unfortunately did no one a favor, including himself, by branding himself a socialist. He isn’t one according to the standard definition of socialism, which is a system where the government owns the means of production (such as factories, agricultural fields, and hospitals). Whether Bernie says it or not, he believes in capitalism as an economic system. He just wants to distribute the wealth generated by capitalism more fairly. For decades, capitalist governments in Western Europe have been ensuring everyone has healthcare, access to vocational training, various safety nets, and often free college. My husband has been working with companies in the capitalist systems of Europe for the last 40 years. The more progressive ones have often been called “welfare states,” a label Europeans embrace to communicate demonstrated concern over the welfare of their people. (That label…
Are we facing a V, U, or L-shaped economic future?
Will we have a V, U, or L future? Since the 2008 deep recession, we’ve had an upward movement of Gross Domestic Product and other measures of economic well-being. Growing income inequality and too-low wages were notable criticisms. But even these issues were being addressed. After all, there is no better anti-poverty program than a strong economy. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic. A business owner friend said it’s like a boxing match Round One when the first punch is a bout-ending knockout. He has never seen such a sudden downturn in his many years as a business-to-business CEO and owner. What will our national growth rate look like in the months and years ahead? There are three potential outcomes for the nation, a V-pattern (rapid recovery to pre-pandemic levels), U-pattern (slump followed by recovery), or an L-pattern (the economy stays depressed for years…
Are “Too Big” Companies Proof that Capitalism is Bad?
The Democratic presidential primary pitted an anti-capitalism leader against a set of moderate contenders, with Elizabeth Warren straddling both by arguing about breaking up too-big-for-our-good companies to encourage more capitalistic competition. Who is right? There are three main mechanisms by which companies get really big: (1) by capturing economies of scale that give bigger sized companies an inherent advantage; (2) by developing or acquiring non-competing, synergistic products that accelerate growth; and (3) by acquiring direct competitors to gain control in a market and reduce supply. Facebook and Google are examples of #1. An example of #2 is Intuit acquiring Turbo Tax to extend its line of personal finance tools. The airline mergers are a classic example of #3, which in this case led to industry consolidation. It’s within that third strategy—acquiring the competition—that you can easily find fodder to both defend and criticize…