David Brooks in his NYT article, “An Innovation Agenda,” is recommending an agenda that would help government “steer and spark innovation without controlling it.” He outlines nine actions he would like to see the government take in order to stimulate the economy:
- Push hard to fulfill the Obama administration’s education reforms. Those reforms, embraced by Republicans and Democrats, encourage charter school innovation, improve teacher quality, support community colleges and simplify finances for college students and war veterans. That’s the surest way to improve human capital.
- Pay for basic research. Federal research money has been astonishingly productive, leading to DNA sequencing, semiconductors, lasers and many other technologies. Yet this financing has slipped, especially in physics, math and engineering.
- Rebuild the nation’s infrastructure. Abraham Lincoln spent the first half of his career promoting canals and railroads. Today, the updated needs are just as great. …
- Find a fiscal exit strategy…. Aappoint a binding commission, already supported by Republicans and Democrats, which would create a roadmap toward fiscal responsibility and then allow the Congress to vote on it, up or down.
- Gradually address global imbalances. … (Use) diplomacy to rebalance exchange rates and other distorting policies.
- Loosen the so-called H-1B visa quotas to attract skilled immigrants. …
- Encourage regional innovation clusters. Innovation doesn’t happen at the national level. It happens within hot spots …
- Lower the corporate tax rate so it matches international norms. …
- Don’t be stupid. Don’t make labor markets rigid. Don’t pick trade fights with the Chinese. Don’t get infatuated with research tax credits and other gimmicks …
