---
title: "Step Up Global Competitiveness in Lame Duck"
summary: |-
  There’s no need to wait until 2013 for Congress to pass essential legislation. Our global competitors certainly aren’t waiting to improve their tax, talent, technology and trade systems.
date: "2012-11-16"
issues: ["National Competitiveness"]
authors: ["Robert D. Atkinson", "Stephen Ezell"]
content_type: "Op-Eds & Contributed Articles"
canonical_url: "https://itif.org/publications/2012/11/16/step-global-competitiveness-lame-duck/"
---

# Step Up Global Competitiveness in Lame Duck

After a record-setting $6 billion in spending to influence the makeup of the White House, Senate and House, it turns out the political landscape won’t shift markedly in 2013. So with pressing challenges facing the U.S. economy, there’s no reason both chambers of Congress shouldn’t pass key legislation to spur innovation and competiveness when they return for the lame-duck session. As we document in “[Innovation Economics: The Race for Global Advantage](http://globalinnovationrace.com/),” the United States is losing in innovation-based competitiveness, which is keeping unemployment high and slowing recovery. Congress should tackle six key legislative priorities before the anticipated adjournment of the 112th Congress.


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*Source: Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF)*
*URL: https://itif.org/publications/2012/11/16/step-global-competitiveness-lame-duck/*