Even if the US could somehow bring back the manufacturing economy of half a century ago, it wouldn’t be an improvement.
President-elect Donald Trump’s economic legacy may well depend on whether he prefers the comparative form of an adjective. Specifically, does he believe it is it hard to make a living in the US — or harder than it used to be?
It is not an insignificant distinction. The central conceit of economic populism, dominating both the left and the right, is that things used to be better. This is a misdiagnosis. Making your way in an uncertain world and a constantly changing economy has always been hard — and always will be. But things are not harder than they used to be; in many ways they’re getting easier.
That may be a small and not especially helpful consolation to the millions of Americans struggling in today’s economy. But in terms of both political rhetoric and economic policy, the difference matters.
Continue reading the entire piece here at Bloomberg Opinion (paywall)
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Allison Schrager is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor of City Journal.
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