4) On Economic Opportunity (4 of 5)
4) On Economic Opportunity (4 of 5)
The Question: “More than 45 million Americans live in poverty! 2 million Americans are long-term unemployed, and the middle-class is hardly growing. What plan do you have to boost prosperity for people who feel as if the Great Recession hasn’t even ended?”
Free markets will always reward innovation and risk-taking, but too much inequality with little opportunity can lead to cynicism about the fairness in society. In order to defeat that the economy has to grow at a faster rate, while equality of opportunity is the only way to overcome inequality.
This will mean having to employ a 3-part education agenda that raises accountability in K-12, expands early childhood education, and also helps make postsecondary learning effective and affordable. Meanwhile, streamlining the tax regulatory system and bringing down health care costs are also important to encourage better economic opportunity.