There are two competing and very different visions for our future: a conservative vision of deep budget cuts and ever-greater tax cuts for the wealthy that are supposed to “trickle down,” or a progressive vision of an economy that works for everyone built around investments in the middle class.
Multimillionaire entrepreneur Nick Hanauer recently gave a much-discussed TED talk, where he explained that the middle class is the engine of our economy, meaning that middle class workers, not the very wealthy, are America’s true job creators—a claim supported by new analysis from the Center for American Progress’s Heather Boushey and Adam Hersh. Meanwhile, a new book being released in two weeks by Edward Conard, former Bain Capital partner of presumptive GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney, argues that the enormous and growing income inequality in the United States is a sign that the economy is working—and that even greater inequality would be better.
Please join the Center for American Progress Action Fund for an event exploring the economics of the competing visions for America’s future facing both voters and policymakers in the months ahead.