By Kyle LaFleur
The social contract in the wake of the United States’ economic recession was the focus of an address given on Tuesday by Jared Bernstein, the top economic advisor to Vice President Joe Biden.
The social contract, according to Bernstein, is “a consensus wherein the majority agrees to abide by a set of rules. They agree because absent these rules, they and their property and their family would be in danger.”
“I view the great recession as the outcome of a failed social contract,” he added.
Bernstein, who has authored two books on economic issues facing middle-class Americans, argued that there are two types of social contract systems: The first, he said, is ‘YOYO’ (you’re on your own), which he claimed is weaker and reliant upon privatization and defunding of government regulations. The second he said, is ‘WITT’ (we are in this together), which he described as a broader social contract and the path being used by the Obama administration to restore the country’s economic balance.
On other issues, Bernstein credited the 2009 Recovery Act with helping stabilize the nation’s economy, but warned that it will take time for all the benefits of the legislation to be realized.
“The fact that you’ve turned around only means you’re moving in the right direction, it doesn’t mean you’ve arrived at your destination,” he said. “Families are clearly still struggling and we need to do all we can to build on the existing momentum, something the President and our economic team continue to focus on every day.”