Exclusive: Elizabeth Warren Discusses Her New Book, Thomas Piketty and the Disappearing Middle Class

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http://www.alternet.org/economy/exclusive-elizabeth-warren-discusses-her-new-book-thomas-piketty-and-disappearing-middle



Lynn Parramore: What prompted you to write this book?

Elizabeth Warren: I grew up in a family that nearly lost everything, but I ended up in the United States Senate because I grew up in an America that invested in kids like me and built a real future for us. This book is an eyewitness account of how the playing field has been tilted since then, and about fighting back. It’s about losing and winning and getting stronger along the way.

I wrote this book because I know we can do better, I know we can invest in our kids and in research and infrastructure to build a future, instead of more loopholes and special deals for billionaires and big corporations. I’m doing everything I can to get out there and talk about that.

LP: Recent research has revealed that America’s middle class is no longer the world’s most affluent. In your view, what has contributed most to its decline?

EW: The foundations of America's middle class have been shaky for years, but the increasing economic fragility of working families wasn't inevitable. It is the direct consequence of deliberate choices Washington has made over the past generation to put the rich and powerful first and to leave behind working people. Washington is rigged for the big corporations that can hire armies of lobbyists and lawyers, and middle-class families have paid a huge price for that. It’s a real problem.

LP: French economist Thomas Piketty’s book Capital in the 21st Century has struck a nerve with its focus on growing inequality. How does Piketty’s research connect with your own writing and research about the forces operating against ordinary people?

EW: Thomas Piketty assembles the facts to prove a central point about trickle-down economics: Doesn't work. Never did. He has cold, hard data showing how the rich keep getting richer and how the playing field is rigged against working families. But he also shows that government policies to invest in the middle class and help everyone have opportunities can make a real difference. My research has led me to the same conclusions, and I agree strongly with him.

[Laelth]

1. k&r for Elizabeth Warren. n/t

-Laelth