Winner-take-all Politics: How Washington Made T... May 2026

Between 1979 and 2007, the richest 1% saw their income grow by 256% , while the bottom 80% grew by only 20% .

While labor unions and middle-class advocacy groups declined, corporate interests organized into powerful lobbying machines. Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made t...

For decades, Americans were told that rising inequality was an inevitable result of —the idea that computers and globalization naturally reward the highly educated while leaving others behind. However, the authors argue that this "suspect" has an alibi. If technology were the only cause, we would see similar inequality spikes in all advanced nations, yet the U.S. remains a stark outlier. The Investigation: The "Yachts vs. Dinghies" Economy Between 1979 and 2007, the richest 1% saw

This political muscle led to deregulated financial markets, tax cuts for the hyper-wealthy, and a system where "banks are organized; their customers are not". However, the authors argue that this "suspect" has an alibi

The authors found that economic growth didn't just favor the "educated"—it favored the , and even more so the top 0.1% .