In the decades following World War II, the U.S. economy was by almost any measure the world’s most competitive. It boasted the highest manufacturing output, the highest productivity, a huge trade surplus — and, consequently, the highest living standards. But as Rob Atkinson writes in RealClearPolicy, that’s no longer the case. President Trump should focus on this issue like a laser in his second annual address to Congress. To “Make America Great Again,” he needs to articulate a clear vision and detailed agenda for restoring U.S. economic competitiveness.
And a competitiveness agenda should be right up President Trump’s alley, since it will require confronting the nation’s elites with some painful truths.
