Strengthening America’s Economic Dynamism

The Aspen Economic Strategy Group’s seventh annual policy volume focuses on the theme, Strengthening America’s Economic Dynamism. The volume’s publication comes at a time when US policymakers are turning away from free-market principles in favor of protectionist policies and more active government-directed industrial policy. These shifts, combined with growing economic and political difficulties including the country’s mounting debt, limited state capacity, and rapidly advancing technologies, have the potential to hinder economic dynamism and growth. Our 2024 policy volume draws on these themes to answer questions about the state of the US economy amidst an era of rising global tensions, technological change, and a populist backlash to the economic status quo. 

Introduction
By Melissa S. Kearney and Luke Pardue

PART I: ECONOMIC NATIONALISM IN AN ERA OF GLOBALIZATION

Protectionism is Failing and Wrongheaded: An Evaluation of the Post-2017 Shift toward Trade Wars and Industrial Policy
By Michael R. Strain

The Surprising Resilience of Globalization: An Examination of Claims of Economic Fragmentation
By Brad Setser

PART II: FISCAL AND STATE CAPACITY

State Capacity for Building Infrastructure (Coming Soon)
By Zachary Liscow

Eight Questions—and Some Answers—On the U.S. Fiscal Situation (Coming Soon)
By Jason Furman

PART 3: WORKERS, FIRMS, AND COMMUNITIES

Technological Disruption in the US Labor Market
By David Deming, Christopher Ong, and Lawrence H. Summers

Why Crime Matters, and What to Do About It (Coming Soon)
By Jennifer Doleac