A âlucidly arguedâ (Kirkus Reviews), illuminating, and ultimately optimistic roadmap for Americaâs future and the âtestsâ the United States must meet to maintain leadership and power in the 21st centuryâfrom the former US Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
In todayâs fraught global and political climate, the assumption that America maintains its dominant status in global politics is waning. The divisions between us, economic changes driven by globalization and technology, as well as climate change, pandemics, and the resurgence of authoritarianism, make it difficult to be optimistic about Americaâs future. But what if we use this moment as an opportunity to think about what might come next, and how to build what we need to succeed?
If weâre going to allow ourselves to diagnose a âpolycrisisâ then we should also admit the possibility of âpolyprogress.â This book is a roadmap for those who want to take Americaâs challenges head on, and who hold on to the conviction that we can tackle them.
In The Four Tests, Baer argues that we are living through a transition moment and lays out the four tests we must meet:
-Scale: Can the US maintain enough scaleâor create a facsimile of it through deeper partnerships with friends and alliesâas China and other countries continue to rise?
-Investment: Can the US muster and effectively direct resources toward investments, particularly investments in people, to lay a foundation for American success in the post-industrial economy?
-Fairness: Can the US address unfairnesses in its economy and society so that they donât stifle growth and undermine social cohesion in a more competitive world?
-Identity: Can Americans build a thin but shared political identity, inclusive of every American, that can hold us together and help us work together in a difficult global landscape?
While each test poses significant challenges, the US has advantages that some of our most vexing competitors lack. Meeting these tests demands changes in behavior and cultureâfrom politicians, corporate leaders, and citizens. But if we meet these tests, then we can be confident of Americaâs future. The question is not whether we can succeedâbut whether we will.
Straightforward and hopeful, Baerâs pragmatic approach will provide fodder for discussion for Trump-supporting aunts and their Elizabeth Warrenâstan nephews far beyond the beltway.