The Next American Economy - by Samuel Gregg (Hardcover)

About the Book

"One of America's greatest success stories is its economy. For over a century, it has been the envy of the world. The opportunity it generates has inspired millions of people to want to become American.Today, however, America's economy is at a crossroads. Many have lost confidence in the country's commitment to economic liberty. Across the political spectrum, many want the government to play an even greater role in the economy via protectionism, industrial policy, stakeholder capitalism, or even quasi-socialist policies. Numerous American political and business leaders are embracing these ideas, and traditional defenders of markets have struggled to respond to these challenges in fresh ways. Then there is a resurgent China bent on eclipsing the United States' place in the world. At stake is not only the future of the world's biggest economy, but the economic liberty that remains central to America's identity as a nation. But managed decline and creeping statism do not have to be America's only choices, let alone its destiny. For this book insists that there is an alternative. And that is a vibrant market economy grounded on entrepreneurship, competition, and trade openness, but embedded in what America's Founding generation envisaged as the United States' future: a dynamic Commercial Republic that takes freedom, commerce, and the common good of all Americans seriously, and allows America as a sovereign-nation to pursue and defend its interests in an dangerous world without compromising its belief in the power of economic freedom"--

Book Synopsis

Americans across the political spectrum have turned away from free market capitalism, calling for more government intervention into the economy. This optimistic book explains how a dynamic, Commercial Republic that benefits all Americans is still possible.

"Will someone intent on changing the direction of America's economy seize on this text and send it far and wide?"
-Hugh Hewitt, author, attorney, and national host of The Hugh Hewitt Show

"Markets grounded in a commercial republic are what America needs. Gregg shows why."
--Vernon L. Smith, 2002 Nobel Laureate in Economics, Professor of Business Economics and Law at Chapman University

One of America's greatest success stories is its economy. For over a century, it has been the envy of the world. The opportunity it generates has inspired millions of people to want to become American.

Today, however, America's economy is at a crossroads. Many have lost confidence in the country's commitment to economic liberty. Across the political spectrum, many want the government to play an even greater role in the economy via protectionism, industrial policy, stakeholder capitalism, or even quasi-socialist policies. Numerous American political and business leaders are embracing these ideas, and traditional defenders of markets have struggled to respond to these challenges in fresh ways. Then there is a resurgent China bent on eclipsing the United States's place in the world. At stake is not only the future of the world's biggest economy, but the economic liberty that remains central to America's identity as a nation.

But managed decline and creeping statism do not have to be America's only choices, let alone its destiny. For this book insists that there is an alternative. And that is a vibrant market economy grounded on entrepreneurship, competition, and trade openness, but embedded in what America's founding generation envisaged as the United States's future: a dynamic Commercial Republic that takes freedom, commerce, and the common good of all Americans seriously, and allows America as a sovereign-nation to pursue and defend its interests in a dangerous world without compromising its belief in the power of economic freedom.

Review Quotes

"Read this powerful argument from Samuel Gregg as to why faith in the American Experiment in liberty under law requires us to reject economic nationalist trends toward protectionism, the use of industrial policy, and other interventions in the pursuit of transient and populist agendas. Markets grounded in a commercial republic are what America needs. Gregg shows why."
-Vernon L. Smith, 2002 Nobel Laureate in Economics, Professor of Business Economics and Law at Chapman University

"We're long overdue for a morally compelling defense of the market economy--one that avoids the errors of utilitarian dogma and the absolutizing of individual autonomy. In the great and neglected tradition of Adam Smith, Samuel Gregg has given us a philosophical treatment of economic questions that places moral and political concerns front and center while bringing to bear empirical knowledge and sophisticated technical expertise."
--Robert P. George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University

"In The Next American Economy, Samuel Gregg creatively distinguishes between the forces of state capitalism and the free market economy. For the latter to succeed and benefit all people, he shows us, with fascinating historical examples, that America must do much more than follow sound economics. It must embrace all the ideas that made America strong."
--John B. Taylor, Mary and Robert Raymond Professor of Economics at Stanford University, George P. Shultz Senior Fellow in Economics at the Hoover Institution

"Could we get Samuel Gregg's book into the hands of every high school senior and graduating college student, please? Will someone intent on changing the direction of America's economy seize on this text and send it far and wide? Gregg has written a book for broad audiences that should be read from East to West, North to South--by the young, but also by those older among us who have forgotten the purpose of the American story in a dangerous world. Exhortations alone cannot carry forward renewed faith in the American way of capitalism. It must be explained. This is what Gregg has done and in a winsome, winning fashion. Read and pass it on. Purchase it again and again."
--Hugh Hewitt, author, attorney, and national host of The Hugh Hewitt Show

"For years, movements that reject free trade and advocate for industrial policy have gained traction on the right. They have yet to receive a cogent response from conservatives who recognize the U.S. economy's problems--especially those associated with a belligerent China--but who also reject economic nationalism as a solution. Samuel Gregg has produced the response that we need. The Next American Economy is a perfect storm. It acknowledges today's challenges, rebuts economic nationalist policies, and makes a fresh case for a market economy grounded in sound economics and the wisdom of America's first principles. We will be talking about this books for years. For my money, it represents the defining book in addressing this vital topic."
--David L. Bahnsen, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of The Bahnsen Group, host of National Review's Capital Record podcast, and regular guest on Fox Business, CNBC, and Bloomberg