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Commentary
The Future of Wealth Gaps: Economic Bifurcation
The Wealthiest 10 Percent Are Leaving the Rest of Us Behind
1,068 words
By David Demers
In the 2017 documentary “Inequality for All,” President Bill Clinton is shown thanking Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, who was standing behind him on the White House grounds, for his service to the country.
The year was 1996, at the end of Clinton's first term in office.
Reich had just resigned from his position partly to spend more time with his family. But that wasn’t entire reason. Reich, an economics professor who had spent much of his life promoting economic equality, was frustrated that administration officials would not reinvest budget surpluses into programs that would have helped reduce economic inequality.
“[T]here wasn’t the political will to do that,” Reich says to the camera. “Bill Clinton did preside over one of the best economies we’ve had in this country in living memory. The wages of most people went up. Poverty actually declined. But we didn’t do enough. We didn’t really alter the underlying trend.”
A short time later, in a heartfelt moment, he says: “I — I do ask myself whether I’ve been a total failure. I’ve been saying much of the same thing for 30 years and some of the trends have grown worse. Inequality has become worse. The danger to the economy and democracy have become worse.”
Reich was right.
So what happens to wealth gaps if America continues down this path?
My projections over the next 15 years show that ...
Click PDF icon below to read more
Commentary
The Future of Wealth Gaps: Economic Bifurcation
The Wealthiest 10 Percent Are Leaving the Rest of Us Behind
1,068 words
By David Demers
In the 2017 documentary “Inequality for All,” President Bill Clinton is shown thanking Secretary of Labor Robert Reich, who was standing behind him on the White House grounds, for his service to the country.
The year was 1996, at the end of Clinton's first term in office.
Reich had just resigned from his position partly to spend more time with his family. But that wasn’t entire reason. Reich, an economics professor who had spent much of his life promoting economic equality, was frustrated that administration officials would not reinvest budget surpluses into programs that would have helped reduce economic inequality.
“[T]here wasn’t the political will to do that,” Reich says to the camera. “Bill Clinton did preside over one of the best economies we’ve had in this country in living memory. The wages of most people went up. Poverty actually declined. But we didn’t do enough. We didn’t really alter the underlying trend.”
A short time later, in a heartfelt moment, he says: “I — I do ask myself whether I’ve been a total failure. I’ve been saying much of the same thing for 30 years and some of the trends have grown worse. Inequality has become worse. The danger to the economy and democracy have become worse.”
Reich was right.
So what happens to wealth gaps if America continues down this path?
My projections over the next 15 years show that ...
Click PDF icon below to read more
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