We love any opportunity to celebrate Made in America. But we love actual industrial policy even more.
President Joe Biden issued a proclamation on Friday to establish July 23 through July 29, 2023, as Made in America Week, calling “all Americans to observe this week by celebrating Made in America and supporting American workers and domestic businesses that are the backbone of building a future here in America.”
Here! Here! We’re all for it! And so is the American public. In a survey conducted in June, Morning Consult found that 65% of U.S. consumers routinely looked for Made in America products in the past year, and our own polling with Morning Consult that same month found overwhelming support (78%) for strengthening Buy America policies for federal government’s purchases.
From a 2024 presidential campaign perspective, this Made in America Week is a helpful reminder of Biden’s economic record, which has emerged as a focal point of his pitch to voters. Since the end of March, the president has been touting his economic vision in a series of “Investing in America” speeches across the country. One of the numbers most spotlighted in his speeches is the nearly 800,000 new manufacturing jobs that have been created since he took office – a feat he attributes to “Bidenomics in action.”
The central message of Biden’s tour is that his administration is “building an economy from the middle out and the bottom up, not trickling down.” Biden has flagged the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act, and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law as his hallmark legislation. Indeed, these historical laws have inspired a manufacturing factory boom. As the Treasury Department reported in June, manufacturing construction spending has doubled since the end of 2021. And private companies have invested $503 billion in manufacturing during Biden’s presidency.
But these investments must be the first step — not the last word. There’s still so much to do to strengthen American manufacturing, from additional investments in critical sectors to enforcing our trade laws to enforcing Buy America to ensure the federal government spends taxpayer money on American-made goods whenever possible.
You can sign us up to celebrate American manufacturers and workers any day, week or year, but you can’t blame us for being a little jaded about honorary weeks. (We’re looking at you, Infrastructure Week.)
Too often, there’s heck of a lot of talk with far too little substantive action when it comes to Made in America rhetoric, and what action there is can crumble when it comes to the details.
The good news is that Americans want better policy. A staggering 70% of voters want the federal government to do even more to support American manufacturing.
There are ways YOU can support better policy, too: We hope you join us in urging Congress to pass important legislation like the Leveling the Playing Field Act 2.0 and the Import Security and Fairness Act. And be sure to show American makers and manufacturers some extra, very well-deserved love this week. Peruse our Made in America shopping directory for inspiration!