Make It In America
In 2022, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and House Democrats unveiled the new Make It In America plan to create jobs and expand economic opportunity. With too many Americans only getting by instead of getting ahead, the plan focuses on four key areas where Congress can be a partner in creating the best conditions for the growth of jobs and opportunities. They are: education, entrepreneurship, infrastructure, and supply chain resilience. Twenty-two bipartisan Make It In America bills have now been enacted into law, including the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law in 2021 and the CHIPS and Science Act in 2022.
To read Leader Hoyer’s remarks on the updated Make It In America plan, click here. For more information on the goals and policy recommendations included in the Make It In America plan, click here.
First launched by Leader Hoyer in 2010 when our economic recovery from the 2008 global financial crisis was just beginning, the Make It In America plan has been focused on gathering the best ideas and transforming them into policies that Congress can enact to help workers and businesses succeed. The plan has brought together bipartisan policies and legislation aimed at promoting economic growth, the creation of jobs that won’t be outsourced, and building a competitive workforce that can access opportunities in today’s changing global economy.
Recognizing the many changes that took place during our recovery, House Democrats held a series of hearings in 2015 called “Make It In America: What’s Next?” to explore new challenges and new opportunities in our economy. During the hearing series, seventy-seven House Democrats heard testimony from innovators, entrepreneurs, economists, Members of Congress, and others about how the Make It In America plan should be updated to address new challenges and take advantage of new opportunities. Click here for a look at testimony from the hearings. It was in these hearings that House Democrats identified the three original areas on which Congress ought to focus: education, entrepreneurship, and infrastructure.
Understanding that the best ideas would come from outside of Washington, Leader Hoyer and House Democrats embarked on the Make It In America Listening Tour starting in 2017, visiting nine cities across the country to hear directly from Americans about the challenges they face and identifying best practices in meeting them. The ideas shared on this tour informed the 2018 update to the Make It In America plan.
As we continue our financial recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Make It In America agenda is responding to the challenges of today’s economy with the inclusion of a fourth pillar, supply chain resilience, which joins MIIA’s existing pillars of education, entrepreneurship, and infrastructure to serve as an effective playbook to expand American families’ and businesses’ access to the tools they need to succeed in our twenty-first century global economy
“With millions of Americans still out of work through no fault of their own, we must approach job-creation with the seriousness and urgency this challenge deserves. Unfortunately, the Republican leadership has chosen instead to hold a vote repealing health reform again – a vote the House has already held thirty times this Congress.
Democrats’ Make It In America plan is based on the belief that when more products are made in America, more families will be able to Make It In America. The plan is intended to create the conditionsto help American businesses produce goods here, innovate here, and create jobs here; it includes many of the investments necessary for America to out-educate, out-innovate, and out-build its international competitors. President Obama has already signed ten Make It In America bills into law, many of which won bipartisan support. Business and labor leaders alike support Democrats’ Make It In America plan—because Making It In America is central to the future of our competitiveness, our jobs, and our place in the world.
As he prepared to take office, President Kennedy spoke to a nation troubled by anxiety over America’s leadership in the world and uncertainty over whether future Americans would inherit a strong and secure economy.
“I commend the Obama Administration for continuing to take a strong approach to enforcing trade rules in response to the unfair import duties China placed on American autos. When American products compete on a level playing field, we win – and our workers win. China is not playing by World Trade Organization rules, and today’s announcement is part of a continuing effort by the President and Congressional Democrats to ensure a level playing field for American workers and manufacturers.
Etched into the base of Google’s new wireless home media player that was introduced on Wednesday is its most intriguing feature. On the underside there is a simple laser-etched inscription: “Designed and Manufactured in the U.S.A.”
“Rep. Lipinski’s bill, the American Manufacturing Competitiveness Act, would bring government, business, and labor stakeholders together to formulate a comprehensive national strategy to attract manufacturing businesses to our shores, help them compete overseas, and encourage them to expand and create well-paying jobs here in our communities. Manufacturing has helped lead our recovery, and America continues to be the world’s leading manufacturer. If we want to build on that trend and remain the global leader in manufacturing, we need a comprehensive strategy like the one this bill would authorize. I commend the House Energy and Commerce Committee for agreeing today to advance this bill to the full House with bipartisan support.
“I commend Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee, led by Ranking Member Sandy Levin and joined by Budget Committee Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen, for introducing the Invest in America Now Act. This important legislation extends the bipartisan 100% bonus depreciation deduction that provides businesses with an incentive to invest in new equipment and growing their capacity, which will help create jobs. This extension is paid for by eliminating an unnecessary tax break for the largest oil and gas companies, which have been making record profits.
Wanted to pass along some highlights from this morning’s WSJ article with Republican governors touting economic gains and the growth of manufacturing in their states, complicating Mitt Romney’s doom-and-gloom narrative:
Right now, in this room, many of you are busy typing away on your smartphones, broadcasting snippets of information to the remotest corners of our world. Texting, tweeting, email – all have become ubiquitous tools in the transfer of information and the latest step in the march of innovation. We live at an exciting moment when we can feel the pulse of change literally in our fingertips.