America is more divided than ever, not just along party lines but by an economic fault line.

On one side, tech hubs like Silicon Valley — home to Apple, Google, Nvidia and Tesla — are amassing vast amounts of wealth.

On the other side, manufacturing towns like Warren, Ohio, and Johnstown, Pa., are suffering from decades of disinvestment and the offshoring of jobs.

The failed economic policies of both parties have fueled inequality and division. NAFTA and the admission of China into the World Trade Organization without guardrails led to a race to the bottom.

The economy is broken, and Americans are looking to our leaders for solutions. That is why I have been traveling the country to hear from people who have been left behind.

I recently met with UAW Mack Truck workers in Allentown, Pa., who said their plant is closing, and 350 manufacturing jobs are being relocated to Mexico.

On the campaign trail, Donald Trump and JD Vance railed against factory closures, high costs and the offshoring of jobs. However, after decades of economic hardship in Allentown, Trump’s blanket tariffs are now adding to that pain by driving up truck prices and reducing orders.

The destruction caused by Trump’s tariffs is being felt everywhere, regardless of where you live. Cars are up to $12,000 more expensive. Grocery costs are rising. Construction prices for homes and factories are surging. Small businesses are suffering from higher costs.

The economy shrank by 0.2 percent in the first three months of Trump’s return to office. There was a 2.4% growth when President Joe Biden left office.

Trump and Vance are clinging to 19th-century ideas instead of looking to the future. Conquering Greenland and Panama and building a fortress with high tariffs won’t bring manufacturing back or create prosperity.

They have packed the administration with billionaires who are on a crusade to dismantle the government, not to reduce waste but to usher in a New Gilded Age to benefit the wealthiest.

Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” will cut Medicaid, food stamps, veterans’ benefits, and education funding while adding $3.8 trillion over 10 years to deficits with tax cuts for the wealthy.

Even tech leaders in Silicon Valley who supported Trump are waking up to his failed economic agenda.

At this critical moment, Democrats must offer a bold 21st-century vision for economic renewal and innovation to counter Trump’s and Vance’s outdated and destructive platform.

I call it a new economic patriotism.

Instead of building the factories of the past, we must invest in steel and semiconductors, ships and chips, software and hardware with AI and robotics driving results. Every year, our country should create 100,000 skilled trades jobs — from electricians to machinists — and provide AI training in data and cybersecurity.

We need a White House Economic Development Council that will work with local communities to supercharge economic growth and establish a National Investment Bank to support them.

And yes, we can have strategic tariffs. It was a mistake to let China devastate our steel, aluminum and electronics industries by dumping their production abroad. To revitalize manufacturing and inspire innovation, like what built Silicon Valley, we need stable economic policy and investments to support companies building in America.

Healthcare, childcare and education must also be at the core of this vision. We can’t be the most innovative economy if we don’t invest in our people.

We spend twice as much as the next leading country on healthcare, yet we rank behind other industrialized nations in life expectancy. The obscene cost of healthcare has pushed manufacturers offshore and kept wages stagnant for decades. Medicare for All is a moral investment and a pro-growth investment.

Too many parents leave their jobs due to high childcare costs. Providing quality childcare at $10 a day will strengthen America’s workforce. And public college and vocational education should be free so every student can succeed without debt.

Fifty-seven years ago, Robert F. Kennedy delivered a speech at the City Club of Cleveland, where I recently spoke. In 1968, America was struggling, as it is today, to overcome deep economic and political divides.

In his speech, Kennedy said that “our own children’s future cannot be built on the misfortunes of others,” and he urged Americans to pursue a shared purpose instead of seeing those who differ from us as “enemies.”

Embracing economic patriotism can be our new national purpose.

It’s time for America to come together — from the coasts to the heartland, from the South to the Southwest — to rebuild and reindustrialize every town nationwide. Business and labor, technologists and scientists, local leaders and national voices — all working together for a bold 21st-century economic renewal.

America must lead and be the preeminent economy where every community and family has a real shot at economic independence and security.

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ABOUT THE WRITER

Rep. Ro Khanna, a Democrat, represents California’s 17th Congressional District. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.

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