A Secure Industrial Strategy Starts at the Upstream
July 26, 2022In everything from batteries to solar panels, the energy sources of tomorrow depend on inputs from China. The good news is that it it's not too late. The US, its allies, and its partners can still compete. But they will have to start with the upstream.
With the Supply Crisis Accelerating, Industry Needs to Step Up Not Hunker Down
July 20, 2022For decades, bad habits have become entrenched. The country has allowed itself to auction off long-term economic prosperity in exchange for short-term profits. Now, the US must break its habits, not take false shelter in them.
China’s COVID Antiviral Pill Shows That the US Is Running the Wrong Race
July 10, 2022If the US is to have any hope of a productive economic future – and if the US is to compete effectively with China – it needs to shift from a focus on R&D to a focus on application and industrialization.
Fireworks, the Fourth, and an Industrial Future
July 4, 2022It’s the Fourth of July, a day to celebrate the United States of America. The US was able to secure that independence, against all odds, in large part because it was able to support itself militarily and economically; because during the Revolutionary War, Washington and Congress doubled down on developing American manufacturing.
Fixing the Solution Deficit
June 23, 2022Force Distance Times is dedicated to re-inserting solutions into the conversation. That starts at productive capacity. It ends with a future that works.
Supply-Side Tools for a Supply-Side Problem
June 20, 2022An effective response to inflation – and to the more systemic supply demand mismatch that threatens the US economy – requires pairing the Fed’s monetary policy band-aids with investment in supply.
At a Time of Runaway Inflation, Tech Is an Ally Not a Foe
June 11, 2022It’s time for Washington to start working with, not against, big tech; to start leveraging American industrial scale in order to fight inflation and for the global order.
If Washington Wants to Beat Inflation, It Needs to Lean into Tariffs – Not Relax Them
June 6, 2022The answer to inflation is not to ease tariffs. It is to stop with the band-aids. The US should see inflation as the motivation to invest in domestic production; tariffs as the market opportunity to do so.
The Era of One Grand Bargain Is Over: Today’s Competition Demands Thousands of Bargains
May 29, 2022The United States needs to reclaim control over international industry. Doing so requires working with its allies and partners. But the United States will have to do so from the ground up, through countless compromises, and skirmishes, with the private sector. This is not an efficient method. But it is the only way to be effective.
Make the Right Choice for the US-China Tech Competition
May 26, 2022US industry – powered by scale and global reach – fueled the country’s rise. The US needs that industrial strength now. But today, it will come from tech not from steel. And it will only come if that tech operates on big platforms.
How Washington Can Resolve the Energy Crisis — for Today, and Tomorrow
May 23, 2022If Secretary Granholm wants more energy production, she should orient her relationship to industry around reshaping incentives to align tomorrow’s demand with today’s supply. She should make clear that incentives for increased production will continue next month, and the months after.
The Baby Formula Shortage Could Have Been Avoided. Let’s Make Sure the Next One Is
May 17, 2022The baby formula shortages shows the US entering an era of industrial dislocation, and competition, not seen in decades. The way for America to win in an era of shortage and a competition for supply chains is to recognize the hot spots – and then open the floodgates for industry to do its thing.
In the Global Semiconductor Race, the US Should Remember to Tie Its Shoes
May 9, 2022Washington needs to invest not only in next-generation technological advance, but also into semiconductor production itself, and the materials necessary for it. Such investments are critical for a robust industrial base. They would also be diplomatically advantageous.
Tariffs are Not the Reason for Inflation. They’re How to Fix It
May 7, 2022The answer to inflation is not to ease tariffs. It is to stop with the band-aids. It is to keep tariffs up, but also to take the proactive measures that they are supposed to encourage: The US should see inflation as a push to invest in domestic production; tariffs as the market opportunity to do so.
The Lend-Lease We Need: Making the War Machine Work for the American Worker
May 1, 2022Assistance to Ukraine could be the catalyst that the US needs to start effectively investing in domestic production; to start rebuilding the arsenal of democracy, right when the world needs it most.
The Economy Is Shrinking. That’s Not a Good Thing.
April 29, 2022The optimistic take is first, that Washington sits at the perfect inflection point to adjust economic policies that contributed to this imbalance – and, second, that early indications suggest the private sector may already be taking the lead, whether Washington adjusts or not.
Want an Energy Revolution? Try Investing in It
April 24, 2022The green economy constitutes a multi-trillion dollar market opportunity. It’s also an opportunity for geo-economic power: With appropriate and sufficient investments, a country can maneuver to control tomorrow’s supply chains and manufacturing capacity, and therefore to project influence internationally.
We Can Avoid Recession. But We Need to Fix Supply
April 22, 2022What if, in addition to immediate, demand-side monetary policy quick fixes, Washington was to set about investing in production of critical inputs, manufacturing facilities, and improved logistics systems? It’s entirely possible, and necessary.
Global Food Shortage Looms: The US Needs to Step Up
April 17, 2022The US needs to start thinking about food as a strategic resource, investing in and protecting supply accordingly, and doing so in a way updated for the realities of modern agriculture. That is what defending today's global order demands.
Breaking the Inflation Cycle: A Roadmap for Domestic Resilience
April 15, 2022We need a gameplan for domestic resilience so that today's inflation crisis does not continue indefinitely and does not recur. We need to rethink our permissive approach external dependencies; to make sure that we can make more – and more of what is foundational to economic functioning -- at home.
The Amazon Playbook for Long Term Competitiveness
April 11, 2022In its board rooms and on the ground, Amazon is deliberately adopting frameworks and investments designed to foster long-term competitiveness, even what that comes at the expense of quarterly returns or shareholder enthusiasm.
China’s COVID-19 Lockdown Should Bring Production Back to America
April 8, 2022China’s COVID-19 debacle could be precisely the impetus the US needs to get serious about rebuilding supply chains. These should provide markets a prod to start pricing in the real costs of offshoring – and Washington justification for dedicated, emergency investments in domestic industry.
How Huawei Should Push the US to Reframe Commercial Success
April 3, 2022Huawei's annual report should be the push we need to start measuring success in terms of either competitive production or control over production – and to start investing in those.
It’s Not Too Late for Washington to Learn Supply and Demand
April 1, 2022Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has shown that the US cannot afford to depend on geopolitical adversaries for critical factors. Instead, the US should be investing in domestic production that can not only prop up national resilience, but also that of allies and partners.
Lizzo Needs to Think Bigger
March 30, 2022It’s time for new playbook for the American celebrity: It’s time for US celebrities to start launching lines produced in America, with American materials, according to American norms.
When Promises Aren’t Enough: An LNG Roadmap
March 25, 2022Producing things is difficult and Washington has been out of the game for some time. But producing things is also possible. And Washington needs to get back into the game, yesterday. We can start with LNG -- and actually help Europe in the process.
Don’t Forget the Build in Build Back Better
January 12, 2022American national defense faces a very different threat than it did in when the Defense Production Act was implemented in 1950. But mobilization of domestic production may be even more critical to today’s challenge – and to the future of the United States – than it was seven decades ago.
