Education reform must accompany industrial policy
Max Mallhi
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On Wednesday, a group of four Republican lawmakers, including Sens. Tom Cotton (R-AR), Todd Young (R-IN), Marco Rubio (R-FL), and J.D. Vance (R-OH), advocated their vision of new conservative economics. Regardless of one’s stance on these proposals, their top message was clear: American interests are key.
The forum, “Rebuilding American Capitalism,” was hosted by American Compass at the Kennedy Caucus Room in the Russell Senate Office Building to promote their newly released policy handbook aimed at conservative policymakers. The senators agreed that some of the policies in the book would be met with skepticism from most of their Republican colleagues.
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Although the lawmakers in the group want to shift away from traditional free-market economics, they highlight the importance of maintaining belief in capitalism. At the same time, they mention certain situations that require government involvement — for example, economic investment that affects national security and lowering college debt. One good thing about their solutions is they’re not advocating taxpayers participate in income reallocation, unlike the Biden administration’s student debt forgiveness plan. Rather, they caution against the government overstepping in the market. As Rubio put it, “America is not a market; the market is a tool.” Simply put, this translates into nation over market.
In the past few decades, we have deindustrialized ourselves by ignoring industrial production and shifting toward fields such as Big Tech. America was once a highly industrialized country that was capable of producing everything within its borders. But globalists dismantled American interests when shipping jobs overseas went unchecked. This has disproportionately affected the working class. While shipping jobs overseas benefits businesses in terms of cheap labor and low costs of production, we must consider the imminent security threat in addition to unfair tariff policies that hurt American interests, especially when national security is involved.
For example, relying on China for semiconductors is dangerous. Spying concerns are a direct threat when it comes to intelligence and nuclear technology. But it is sad to see that Democratic lawmakers in both chambers used the CHIPS Act to further their backdoor deals and help China in the long term by rejecting GOP amendments to the bill. They did this while injecting “woke” initiatives and subsidizing targeted companies. It is indeed important for the government to step in and redirect the market to save American interests when needed, but other incentives, such as eliminating barriers to entry and lowering costs for businesses to establish these industries in the first place, serve as more appropriate policy decisions than giving out blank checks. According to Vance, the Democrats create “implementation problems” in Washington.
As Young claimed, “Conservatism is inspired by its principles,” and Republicans must “not shy away from governing and seeking solutions for problems.” While there is certainly truth in that statement, the new Right must acknowledge its economic plan isn’t without its shortcomings. This is why many of their Republican colleagues are wary of supporting it.
For example, concerns about creating a balance between the free market and minimum government involvement need to be addressed. Specifically, this can be achieved by establishing trust between voters and policymakers through the creation of specific channels of accountability. Moreover, the extent to which it is acceptable for the government to step in and how we can make sure that left-wing Democratic lawmakers don’t take advantage of that when they find themselves to be in control need to be addressed.
Education is undoubtedly an important player in building a resilient economic system. Cotton rightfully said elite colleges such as Harvard and Yale are essentially “hedge funds with left-wing colleges attached to them.” The education system is in desperate need of reform. Pushing his American Workforce Act, the senator stressed the importance of vocational, technical, and workforce training. This is interconnected with bringing back industries to America. For instance, employers find it hard to find workers who have exactly the skills needed for production. This is because elite colleges have continuously pushed for the four-year college plan. In doing so, they have caused millions of people to accrue a total of approximately $2 trillion in student debt. This has also left people unemployed for reasons related to an increased focus on general education requirements, discouraging skill development, and the creation of majors that have no job markets.
To maximize American interests, we must maximize the welfare of Americans by bringing back industries and reforming our education system without compromising on capitalist principles. As Young said, “Conservatives should be careful not to suffer from the lack of our own imagination.” Investment in economic development and national security must be paramount. In the end, prosperity and strong national security will be the result of Republican economic policies, and education will play an important role.
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Max Mallhi is a summer 2023 Washington Examiner fellow.