Rob Atkinson writes in Forbes that state officials have long understood that the most important factor in state economic health is the wellbeing of their traded sectors—the companies and industries that do business nationally and globally. That’s why all 50 have policies to help firms in sectors such as manufacturing, tourism, software, and Internet-based services. In Washington, however, most policymakers and economists who advise them do not think this way. It’s time for them to start thinking differently.
