The American Security Project (ASP) has released a new report analyzing the issues of the country’s national competitiveness. The report details the issues with: business climate; infrastructure; national debt; labor market and immigration; defense industrial base; and, education and healthcare, and lays out urgent social, political and economic challenges and links these with national security.
Based on the concept that the country’s ability to compete in a global economy, attract the world’s brightest workers and nurture a functional political system is slipping, the report looks at ways to sustain the pillars upon which America’s national security rests.
There are several key concepts at the core of the report:
- America’s political and business leaders must understand that improving this nation’s competitiveness is an urgent priority with much higher stakes than is acknowledged today.
- It is time to reconsider the interconnected factors causing this deterioration in order to determine a viable path to sharpening America’s edge.
- The country’s competitive position will require much more than assembling disparate policy initiatives and expecting them to deliver success.
The report also reframes one of the recurring questions of international relations: What factors really make us strong and safe?
August Cole, adjunct fellow at the ASP and author of the report, explains, “This is an urgent problem—the U.S. ranking (WEF) fell from 1st to 7th within five years—and the narrative of U.S. global leadership is shifting. Effective action starts with looking at more than military might to understand what truly makes America strong. It is an Oval Office or boardroom issue as much as a kitchen-table issue.”
Christine Todd Whitman, ASP board member, former EPA Administrator and Governor of New Jersey, adds, “We need to think strategically, not just about solving our unmanaged debt, but also how and where we invest in infrastructure, health and education. We will need to reform institutions and ensure we support STEM and technology education.”
Raj Fernando, ASP board member and CEO & Founder of Chopper Trading, reiterates, “It is critical that we consider the future of our country in terms of infrastructure, immigration, education and innovation, while not forgetting the importance of growing our way out of our deficit.”
To download a copy of the report, click this link.
