The American Rescue Plan, One Year Later

In March 2021, US policymakers made a game-changing choice: to prevent the kind of jobless recovery we’ve seen after past recessions by prioritizing full employment and investing at scale.

One year later, we have millions more jobs, higher wages, and greater worker power. And that’s a story worth telling.

“Celebrating the economic gains created as a result of the American Rescue Plan is not to minimize the real challenges we face,” Roosevelt’s Steph Sterling writes.

“But after decades of weakening labor bargaining power and eroding labor standards, as Emily DiVito and Aaron Sojourner recently argued, better jobs and increased worker power are set to drive a more equitable pandemic recovery and prosperity in the years ahead.”

Read more in “The American Rescue Plan: An Economic Success Story Worth Telling.”

Post-Neoliberalism at a Crossroads

“In the world of economic ideas, neoliberalism is no longer hegemonic,” Roosevelt President and CEO Felicia Wong writes in Democracy Journal’s new “Beyond Neoliberalism” symposium. 

“A new post-neoliberal politics will rest on three pillars: a deep shift on race; policy design for the people; and a full-throated support of democracy itself.” Read on.

The Sectors Driving Inflation

This week’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed a 0.8 percent price increase from January to February—with most of it driven by three basic necessities, as Roosevelt’s Lauren Melodia tweeted. 

“75% of this inflation came from . . . housing, energy, and food. Low-income and other vulnerable households bear the brunt of inflation in these categories.” Read more of her analysis.

Join the Conversation

On Tuesday, March 22, at noon ET, join the Roosevelt Institute and a panel of experts for our first virtual policy talk of the year: a conversation about how the US-EU Green Steel Deal could transform our economy and serve as a model for decarbonizing other industries.

Opening remarks by:

• Ambassador Katherine Tai, United States Trade Representative
• Felicia Wong, President and CEO, Roosevelt Institute

Panelists:

• Erin Mayfield, Assistant Professor of Engineering, Dartmouth College
• Tim Meyer, Professor of Law and Director of the International Legal Studies Program, Vanderbilt Law School
• Saule Omarova, Senior Fellow, Roosevelt Institute and Professor of Law, Cornell Law School
• Todd N. Tucker, Director of Industrial Policy and Trade, Roosevelt Institute (moderator)

Learn more and register now.