The study argues that the U.S. political system “is no longer delivering good results for the average American.” Harvard study: Political 'dysfunction' crippling U.S. economy

America’s dysfunctional political system has emerged as the biggest threat to its economic competitiveness, according to a new Harvard Business School study.

The study, whose lead author was Michael Porter, best known for the book “Competitive Strategy,” argues that the U.S. political system “is no longer delivering good results for the average American.”


The authors are not impressed with the U.S. economy’s rebound from the 2007-2008 recession, and they blame a government crippled by political polarization.

“While a slow recovery is underway, fundamentally weak U.S. economic performance continues and is leaving many Americans behind,” they write. “The federal government has made no meaningful progress on the critical policy steps to restore U.S. competitiveness in the last decade or more” – chief among them, a failure to enact tax reform and invest in infrastructure.

That failure, the authors write, “reflects an unrealistic and ineffective national discourse on the reality of the challenges facing the U.S. economy and the steps needed to restore shared prosperity. Business has too often failed to play its part in recent decades, and a flawed U.S. political system has led to an absence of progress in government, especially in Washington.”

The authors polled Harvard Business School alumni on the political reforms they thought were needed. “By far the most common category of suggestion was changing the election process, including steps such as modifying the primary system and shortening elections,” the authors found. Others suggested “limiting campaign contributions from corporations and unions,” “changes to Congressional rules and norms,” and the institution of term limits.