Growing the Middle Class

Growing the middle class is fundamental to strengthening the U.S. economy, and yet for decades, Americans’ ability to secure and maintain a place in the middle class has been increasingly out of reach. New laws—the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act—are spurring public and private investments to revitalize American industry, tackle climate change by boosting clean energy production, and create good jobs you can raise a family on. Pairing these investments with new efforts to crack down on corporate greed will also help lower the cost of living—from prescription drugs and energy, to transportation and everyday goods—and grow the middle class.

Photo shows two people assembling a piece of machinery
Two employees work on the production line at Ford’s electric vehicle assembly plant in Dearborn, Michigan, September 2022. (Getty/Jeff Kowalsky/AFP)

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Crushing the Commonwealth: Virginians Share How the Trump Administration’s Policies Are Hurting Them, Their Livelihoods, and the Virginia Economy Past Event

Crushing the Commonwealth: Virginians Share How the Trump Administration’s Policies Are Hurting Them, Their Livelihoods, and the Virginia Economy

Please join the Center for American Progress for the next in a series of virtual events highlighting the impact that DOGE's cuts are having on the lives of everyday Americans; this event will focus on the Trump administration's impacts on Virginia.

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Introducing a Framework for Private School Voucher Accountability Report
A teacher is seen in a classroom explaining something at the board while students sit at their desks and another teacher watches.

Introducing a Framework for Private School Voucher Accountability

As privatization efforts to redirect funding from public K-12 schools to private institutions continue to expand, an accountability framework for private voucher programs must be implemented to ensure positive student outcomes and thorough oversight of taxpayer dollars.

Weadé James, Tania Otero Martinez

Scott Bessent’s 3 Percent Deficit Target Would Require Massive Cuts to Anti-Poverty Programs and Middle-Class Tax Increases Article
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, arrives for a meeting with Sen. Mike Crapo (R-ID).

Scott Bessent’s 3 Percent Deficit Target Would Require Massive Cuts to Anti-Poverty Programs and Middle-Class Tax Increases

Basic arithmetic suggests that the fiscal goals of President-elect Donald Trump’s treasury pick would slash health care and food security for working- and middle-class families while renewing tax cuts tilted to the wealthy.

Brendan Duke, Bobby Kogan

New Samsung Semiconductor Plant in Taylor, Texas Article
A large building labeled

New Samsung Semiconductor Plant in Taylor, Texas

An investment by Samsung, spurred by funding from the CHIPS and Science Act, will create a new semiconductor plant in Taylor, Texas, to complement the company’s previous investment in chips in Austin, Texas.

New York Castleton-on-Hudson Bridge Restoration Article
Pete Buttigieg is seen speaking behind a podium with construction workers in the background.

New York Castleton-on-Hudson Bridge Restoration

This investment provides funding to restore one of the most economically significant bridges in the country, currently in deep disrepair, so that it can remain in use for another 65 years.

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