Capitalism For All

PART IIIBusiness Plans for America

Most Americans are used to hearing about business plans in the context of companies. But here's the truth: Nations need business plans too. And not just abstract economic policies but targeted, measurable, action‐ready plans for the actual people who make up the economy.

An economy isn't a spreadsheet. It's not a quarterly report or a stock index. It's people. People who are working, learning, inventing, spending, and building the future. If the people thrive, the economy thrives. If they're left behind, the economy's potential shrinks.

That's why we need a new way of thinking about national strategy. We need specific business plans for the communities that have historically been underinvested in, underestimated, or excluded altogether. Not charity. Not symbolic gestures. Not top‐down dictates from Washington or Wall Street. Real, practical frameworks for growing ownership, economic participation, income, and wealth in every corner of America.

Of course, some will say “We can't afford this kind of investment.” Maybe you're even thinking that right now, reading this. But the reality is exactly the opposite: We can't afford not to. America is facing slowing gross domestic product growth, a shrinking middle class, and an aging population. Every serious economist agrees that we need new sources of productivity and innovation.

Research in the Journal of Economic Perspectives shows that reducing the racial earnings gap by 2030 could increase US ...