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cover of episode The Case for a New U.S. Industrial Policy | Ian Fletcher

The Case for a New U.S. Industrial Policy | Ian Fletcher

2025/6/9
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Demetri Kofinas
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Ian Fletcher
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Demetri Kofinas：Hidden Forces 旨在挑战共识，培养批判性思维，本期节目将探讨美国工业政策，批判自由市场经济学，并探讨各国为建设关键产业和激发创新所使用的工具，以及工业政策的国际和历史案例，并提出对美国工业政策的建议。 Ian Fletcher：我长期以来一直反对自由贸易，早在 2007 年就开始写作相关书籍。我认为自由贸易理论存在时间跨度上的漏洞，主流经济学公式没有区分国家长期繁荣与短期消费之间的差异。美国经济的问题在于过度依赖自由市场，忽视了某些行业对国家经济和安全的战略价值。正确的政府干预可以改善国家产业结构，历史案例表明，许多成功的经济体都实行了积极的工业政策。金融方面的问题在于美元被高估，导致贸易逆差。我们应该关注商品和资本的流动，以及国内外的供需关系。美国需要制定更全面的工业政策，不仅关注国家安全和公共卫生，还要关注经济繁荣本身。我们需要平衡贸易，并采取措施管理货币，以避免过度依赖廉价进口和损害国内产业。

Deep Dive

Chapters
This chapter explores the author's two-decade-long critique of free trade, highlighting the limitations of free-market economics and the need for industrial policy. It discusses the author's shift from IT consulting to writing about economics, and his initial work on the time horizon problem in free trade theory.
  • Critique of free trade economics
  • Time horizon problem in free trade theory
  • The role of the state in the economy

Shownotes Transcript

In Episode 421) of Hidden Forces, Demetri Kofinas speaks with Ian Fletcher, one of America’s foremost experts on industrial policy, about the problems with free trade and how to revitalize the U.S. economy. Ian and Demetri spend the first hour of the episode laying the foundation for the argument Fletcher and his co-author, Marc Fasteau, present in their book Industrial Policy for the United States: Winning the Competition for Good Jobs and High-Value Industries. This portion includes a comprehensive critique of free-market economics and a systematic exploration of the tools that can be deployed to build critical industries and ignite flywheels of innovation essential to the long-term success of a modern economy. In the second hour, Kofinas and Fletcher examine international and historical examples of both successful and unsuccessful implementations of industrial policy, discussing what went right, what went wrong, and how those lessons can inform the development and implementation of a successful industrial policy for the United States in the 21st century. The conversation concludes with a series of policy recommendations for the White House and Congress. Subscribe to our premium content—including our premium feed, episode transcripts, and Intelligence Reports—by visiting HiddenForces.io/subscribe). If you’d like to join the conversation and become a member of the Hidden Forces Genius community—with benefits like Q&A calls with guests, exclusive research and analysis, in-person events, and dinners—you can also sign up on our subscriber page at HiddenForces.io/subscribe). If you enjoyed today’s episode of Hidden Forces, please support the show by:

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Producer & Host: Demetri Kofinas Editor & Engineer: Stylianos Nicolaou Subscribe and support the podcast at https://hiddenforces.io). Join the conversation on Facebook), Instagram), and Twitter) at @hiddenforcespod Follow Demetri on Twitter at @Kofinas) Episode Recorded on 06/2/2025