Marshall Plan for America

In 1948, President Harry Truman authorized $13 billion in economic recovery programs for a Europe hollowed out by war – the plan was dubbed “The Marshall Plan”, intending to rebuild the eviscerated economies and shattered spirits of Western Europe. Over the next few years, the Plan was key to the restoration of political stability and revitalization of global economies.

For millions of Americans – especially the next generation – the American Dream has been downsized. At a time when too many are worried about how they’re going to survive in today’s economy, we must bring back an era of hope and national prosperity. Let’s borrow from the principles of the New Deal and Truman’s Marshall Plan to build an economy that allows every hard-working American the chance to earn a good life – a future which requires a strong and modern government to work together with a thriving and dynamic private sector to achieve historic growth, robust economic security, & sustained social prosperity.

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Compassionate Capitalism

Lately, our country has faced so many pessimistic questions that we’ve stopped asking hopeful ones, like: “What would it look like if every family could make ends meet?” Let’s rally around a vision that better aligns investors and the public interest alike on critical issues like workers’ rights, environmental conservation, and social equality. Instead of hastily constructing an economic foundation based on bureaucratic welfare states or excessive economic concentration, America must be built on the principles of an investments-based economy propping up the American Dream. That means positioning American workers and businesses to compete in the 21st century & building an economy that rewards work, not wealth. Let’s invest in workers, invest in industries, invest in families, and invest in our futures.

Rebuild the Middle Class

The last two decades have been difficult for working families. Americans endured a recession, saw their homes foreclosed, experienced an economy that seemingly grows more unaffordable with every year that passes, & witnessed businesses flatlining as COVID-19 took a sledgehammer to our economy, with unemployment surging to levels not seen since the Great Depression. Today, 44% of Americans can’t even afford an unexpected $1,000 bill. Whether before or after the pandemic, many working families have continued to struggle in an economy that wasn’t built for them.

The road to a strong America at home and abroad begins by rebuilding the backbone of a vibrant, dynamic, and inclusive middle-class. That means creating good-paying American jobs, protecting the right to organize, rebuilding our infrastructure, bringing manufacturing back home, supporting small businesses, & ensuring that every American has the chance to achieve their version of the American Dream.

Revive American Industry & Manufacturing

American industrial might is what made America the greatest country on Earth – our grandfathers used it to beat the Nazis, and our fathers used it to beat the Communists. Over the last several decades, conservative politicians eviscerated our small towns and factories with bad trade deals & an economy built only for the wealthy and well-connected. It’s time we chart a blue-collar blueprint to restore the beating heart of America to its former glory & reignite our industrial might. That means:

Writing trade deals that protect wages & stop the outsourcing of jobs.
Investing in job training, local governments, & the factories of the future.
Becoming the world’s leading renewable energy exporter.
Buying American and hiring American.

The Largest Public Works Project in History

Decades of neglect have let our roads, bridges, and airports fall into a state of decay. The Infrastructure Report Card gave the U.S. an abysmal grade of C-. The World Economic Forum ranks America as 13th globally in quality of infrastructure, with the American Society of Civil Engineers declaring over 45,000 bridges and 1 in 5 miles of all roads to be in poor condition. From the transcontinental railroad and the interstate highway to the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate Bridge – American ingenuity cannot be beat. Let’s reignite a thriving America with a strong middle class and an even stronger infrastructure. That means:

Reviving Roosevelt’s Public Works Administration (PWA) & partnering with the private sector to hire unemployed Americans to repair existing infrastructure and enact the largest public works project in history.
Upgrading crumbling schools, sewers, streets, hospitals, ports, post offices, and municipal buildings.
Constructing new state-of-the-art bridges, beaches, canals, parks, pipelines, public squares, railroads, energy grids, and hundreds of thousands of miles of new road.
Investing in new walkable cities & building modern world-class airports.

Free & Fair Trade

For centuries, America has led the world in spreading wealth and opportunity to all corners of the globe. Free trade lowers costs, puts consumers in charge, & keeps America in the lead. In an ever-growing 21st century economy, there simply is no path to middle-class prosperity without expanding US exports. We must continue to uphold the spirit of free trade & fight for fair deals that protect workers, farmers, employers, and our climate.

Balance the Budget

The numbers don’t lie: making progress on progressive priorities is no longer possible without a newfound commitment to fiscal responsibility. By 2029, our government will spend $1 trillion just on paying interest alone. We’re burning money rather than investing in critical causes, all while neglecting future generations in favor of seniors – saddling us with a nation crushed by debt. It certainly doesn’t help that voters hold a pervasive belief that Republicans are better on the economy than Democrats. Thus, liberals have both a policy and a political problem. To achieve fiscal responsibility, we must:

Enact tax reform to increase revenue, reduce the deficit, crack down on billionaire and corporate tax cheats, & maintain a pro-growth economy.
Reduce waste by mean-testing certain programs and benefits.
Maximize administrative efficiency & reduce gov’t bureaucracy.