The Politics Industry

3

Consequences and Outcomes

The casualties of the unchecked and unbalanced politics industry are the health of our democracy, our long-term economic competitiveness, and our shared prosperity and social progress—three pillars of the American experiment. Looking carefully at these consequences connects the true nature of the politics industry to what it produces.

As you read this chapter, which is the darkest in the book, please allow yourself to feel frustrated anew about this decades-long decline—but trust that there’s light at the end of the tunnel. At the close of this chapter and later in the book, we will pivot from diagnosis and dire straits to the legacy and promise of political innovation that animates our purpose. We will guide you ...