America’s economic future

Former Secretary of Labor and author, Robert Reich.

In his new book Aftershock, Robert Reich details what caused the recession, why the recovery is so anemic and what awaits us if we don’t take steps to reverse the present economic trends. Professor Reich, a former Secretary of Labor under Clinton, argues that the U.S economic recovery is slow because of the record level of inequality between the rich and the poor. He contends that for the past decade, economic gains have benefited only a small fraction of America’s wealthiest and that in order to maintain purchasing power, the middle class has had to go deeply into debt, using rising home values as a convenient ATM. Now that those values have plummeted, Reich says citizens feel angry, anxious and disenfranchised. What is Robert Reich’s prescription for our ailing economy? Re-examine our fundamental principles and create a greater safety net for the middle class.

In his new book Aftershock, Robert Reich details what caused the recession, why the recovery is so anemic and what awaits us if we don’t take steps to reverse the present economic trends. Professor Reich, a former Secretary of Labor under Clinton, argues that the U.S economic recovery is slow because of the record level of inequality between the rich and the poor. He contends that for the past decade, economic gains have benefited only a small fraction of America’s wealthiest and that in order to maintain purchasing power, the middle class has had to go deeply into debt, using rising home values as a convenient ATM. Now that those values have plummeted, Reich says citizens feel angry, anxious and disenfranchised. What is Robert Reich’s prescription for our ailing economy? Re-examine our fundamental principles and create a greater safety net for the middle class.

Guest:

Robert Reich, author of Aftershock: The Next Economy and America’s Future. He is the former Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton, and current Chancellor's Professor of Public Policy at UC Berkeley.