Contact:

Martin Carnoy | mcarnoy1@[Link]

Michael Reich | [Link]@[Link]

FOR RELEASE, SEPTEMBER 15, 2020

MORE THAN 200 ECONOMISTS SIGN A SUPPORT LETTER FOR BIDEN-HARRIS

More than 200 economists have signed a letter of support for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. Signers
include Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, Laura Tyson, William Spriggs, Claudia Goldin, Robert Reich,
Robert Gordon, Ebonya Washington, Jeff Sachs, and Emmanuel Saez. The letter contends that the U.S. is
facing a series of simultaneous major crises? health, economic, and political? and that only strong national
leadership from the Biden-Harris ticket supported by a grassroots democratic movement can address
these crises and create an economy that works for all Americans.
The letter states that the Coronavirus pandemic has exposed how unequal our society has become, that it
has exposed a frayed social safety net, the lack of workplace rights and protection for the lowest paid but
essential workers, an inadequate and unequal health system and the lack of supports for families and older
Americans, and the weakness of a go-it-alone approach in a world facing global challenges.
The letter was drafted and circulated by Professor Martin Carnoy of Stanford,
The Biden-Harris along with Professors Michael Reich of the University of California at Berkeley
program provides our and Derek Shearer of Occidental College. The letter was conceived and
best hope for signatures collected independently of the Biden-Harris Campaign.
promoting sustainable The highly diverse group of signers believe that a Biden presidency can and
economic security for will contain the Coronavirus, and therefore be able to implement the
all Americans. progressive economic policies in the Democratic Party. This platform will
revive the economy, reopen schools safely, establish greater equality, protect
the environment, stimulate American ingenuity and competitiveness, and build a more united and better
society.
The Biden-Harris program, they argue, provides our best hope for creating millions of sustainable new
21st century jobs, greatly expanding the middle class, and promoting sustainable economic security for all
Americans.
Beyond economic policy, the letter signers state:
?As economists, we understand the depth of the challenge that we face and recognize that all of us must
join Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in working for a better America. The perils of inaction are manifest. Too
much is at stake for our country and for the world to stand aside from this historical moment.?
 ECONOMISTS?LETTER OF SUPPORT FOR JOE BIDEN AND KAMALA HARRIS
This November?s election is the most consequential of the 21st century. The outcome will determine
America?s future as a democratic society.
America is in trouble. We are besieged by the Coronavirus, by unemployment and increasing inequality, by
ongoing racism, and attacks on democracy. We are faced with a health crisis, an economic crisis, and a
political crisis? all at the same time. Only strong national leadership supported by a grassroots democratic
movement can restore and reform the country.
The pandemic has exposed how unequal our society has become. It has exposed a frayed social safety net. It
has exposed the lack of workplace rights and protection for the lowest paid but essential workers. It has
exposed an inadequate and unequal health system and the lack of supports for families and older Americans.
It has exposed the weakness of a go-it-alone approach in a world facing global challenges.
A crisis is also a challenge. Strong leadership can contain the Coronavirus and can reopen the economy and
our schools safely. Progressive economic policies can revive the economy,
establish greater equality, protect the environment, stimulate American ingenuity The Biden-Harris
and competitiveness, and build a more united and better society. program will make
We believe that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will provide that leadership and that the economy work
like FDR, JFK, and LBJ, Biden will rise to the moment. The Biden-Harris ticket is for all Americans
supported by a progressive Democratic Party economic platform that, when
implemented, will create millions of sustainable new 21st century jobs and greatly
expand the middle class. Biden and Harris deeply care about people and will fight for economic policies that
reduce inequality and discrimination, and promote sustainable economic security for all Americans.
The Biden-Harris Building Back Better program includes:
- Raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour and supporting worker rights
- Guaranteeing health care for every American by offering a public option and extending Medicare to
those 60 or over.
- Investing in roads, bridges, water systems, airports, and rail systems, creating tens of thousands of
well -paying jobs and assuring that federal procurement extends to minority owned businesses.
- Advancing racial equity as part of national economic recovery.
- Rolling back the Trump tax cut for big corporations, and making the wealthy pay their fair share of
taxes.
- Guaranteeing universal pre-school education and affordable quality day care, and supporting home care
for aging parents.
- Providing relief from student debt and expanding tuition-free public college for working and middle
class families.
- Increasing financing for black-owned small business and black home ownership.
- Establishing a green energy program that reduces carbon emissions, creates jobs, and makes the US a
global leader in renewable energy.
The Biden-Harris program is progressive and practical. It is good economics and good for the country.
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris know how vital it is to build an economy that works for all Americans.
As economists, we understand the depth of the challenge that we face and recognize that all of us must join
Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in working for a better America. The perils of inaction are manifest. Too much
is at stake for our country and for the world to stand aside from this historical moment.
 (SIGNED)

NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY

Daron Acemoglu Massachusetts Institute of Technology Gary Charness University of California Santa Barbara

Liaquat Ahamed Pulitzer Prize Author Howard Chernick City University of New York

Sylvia Allegretto University of California Berkeley Menzie D. Chinn University of Wisconsin, Madison

Treb Allen Dartmouth College Kimberly Clausing Reed College

Donna M. Anderson, University of Arizona Steve Cohn Knox College

Kathryn H. Anderson Vanderbilt University Sarah Cohodes Teachers College Columbia University

Eileen Appelbaum Center for Economic and Policy Research David Cooper Economic Policy Institute

Michael Ash University of Massachusetts at Amherst Sean Patrick Corcoran Vanderbilt University

Bevin Ashenmiller Occidental College Andrew F. Daughety Vanderbilt University

Ragui Assaad University of Minnesota Carlos Davidson San Francisco State University

Lee Badgett Amherst, MA Carmen Diana Deere University of Florida

Ron Baiman Benedictine University Brad DeLong University of California, Berkeley

Dean Baker Center for Economic and Policy Research William Dickens Northeastern University

Radhika Balakrishnan Rutgers University Rafael Dix Carneiro Duke University

Nina Banks Bucknell University Peter Doeringer Boston University

William Barclay Chicago Political Economy Group Arindrajit Dube University of Massachusetts at Amherst

Peter Barnes Co-founder Credo Mobile Kevin Duncan Colorado State University-Pueblo.

Jere R. Behrman University of Pennsylvania Gary Dymski University of California, Riverside.

Peter W. Belenky U.S. Department of Transportation (retired) Alex Eble Teachers College Columbia University

Lourdes Beneria Cornell University Richard Edwards University of Nebraska

Ted Bergstrom University of California Santa Barbara Sebastian Edwards University of California at Los Angeles

Günseli Berik University of Utah Gerald Epstein University of Massachusetts Amherst

Alexandra Bernasek Colorado State University Chris Erikson University of California at Los Angeles

Joydeep Bhattacharya Iowa State University Alexander J. Field Santa Clara University.

Cihan Bilginsoy University of Utah Sean Flaherty Franklin and Marshall College

Emily [Link] Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth Belton Fleisher Ohio State University

Emily Celia Blank Howard University Maria S. Floro American University

Robert A. Blecker American University Nancy Folbre University of Massachusetts at Amherst

Nicholas A. Bloom Stanford University Richard Fowles University of Utah

Barry Bluestone Northeastern University Richard G. Frank Harvard University

Samuel Bowles Santa Fe Institute Barbara M. Fraumeni University of Southern Maine

Ralph Bradburd Williams College Gerald Friedman University of Massachusetts at Amherst

Elissa Braunstein Colorado State University Kevin P. Gallagher Boston University

Clair Brown University of California, Berkeley Paul Gertler University of California at Berkeley

Robert Buchele Smith College Malcolm Getz Vanderbilt University

Jim Campen University of Massachusetts, Boston Teresa Ghilarducci The New School

Martin Carnoy Stanford University Richard Gilbert University of California at Berkeley

Christopher Carpenter Vanderbilt University Herbert Gintis Santa Fe Institute

Alessandra Casella Columbia University Laura Giuliano University of California Santa Cruz

Manuel Castells University of Southern California Paul Glewwe University of Minnesota

 (SIGNED)

NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY

Lonnie Golden Penn State University, Abington Ronald Lee University of California

Claudia Goldin Harvard University Stephan Lefebvre Bucknell University

Robert J. Gordon Northwestern University Henry M. Levin Teachers College Columbia University

Laura Grant Claremont McKenna College David I. Levine University of California

Daphne Greenwood University of Colorado Mark Levinson Service Employees Union

Deborah Ann Haas-Wilson Smith College Deborah Levison University of Minnesota

Eric Hake Catawba College Frank Levy Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Jessie Handbury University of Pennsylvania David Lewin University of California at Los Angeles

Douglas Harris Tulane University Edward J. Lincoln New York University

Heidi Hartmann American University Susanna Loeb Brown University

Joni Hersch Vanderbilt University George Loewenstein Carnegie Mellon University

Bridget Hiedemann Seattle University Nora Lustig Tulane University

Joan Hoffman John Jay College, City University of New York Arthur MacEwan University of Massachusetts, Boston

Michelle Holder John Jay College, City University of New York Nicole Maestas Harvard University

Barbara Hopkins Wright State University Sara Mandelbaum Western Governors University

David Howell The New School Ann Markusen University of Minnesota

Candace Howes Connecticut College Patrick L. Mason Florida State University

Hilary Hoynes University of California at Berkeley Gabriel Mathy American University

Thomas L. Hungerford National Academy for Social Insurance Elaine McCrate University of Vermont

Jennifer Hunt Rutgers University Susan McElroy University of Texas at Dallas

Doreen Isenberg University of Redlands Patrick McEwan Wellesley College

Sarah Jacobson Williams College Ted Miguel University of California at Berkeley

Sanford Jacoby University of California at Los Angeles John Miller Wheaton College

Charles Jeszeck U.S. Government Accountability Office (retired) Lawrence Mishel Economic Policy Institute

Elizabeth Jensen Hamilton College Frank Mulvey Surface Transportation Board (retired); Iter Associates

Derek C. Jones Hamilton College Richard J. Murnane Harvard University

Linda Kamas Santa Clara University Ellen Mutari Stockton University

Lawrence Katz Harvard University Samuel Myers, Jr. University of Minnesota

Richard Kaufman Former Chief Economist, Joint Economic Comm. Julie A. Nelson University of Massachusetts Boston

Farida Khan University of Wisconsin, Parkside Diana Ngo Occidental College

Mary C. King Portland State University Plamen Nikolov The State University of New York at Binghamton

Steven Klees University of Maryland Laurie Nisonoff Hampshire College

David Kotz University of Massachusetts Amherst Seamus O?Cleireacain Purchase College, State University of New York

Daniel Kovenock Chapman University Carol O?Cleireacain Columbia University

Brent Kreider Iowa State University Jennifer Olmsted Drew University

Haydar Kurban Howard University Martha Olney University of California at Berkeley

Mordecai Kurz Stanford University Paul Ong University of California at Los Angeles

Harry Kypraios Rollins College Paul Osterman Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Helen Ladd Duke University Spencer Pack Connecticut College

Thea Lee Economic Policy Institute Richard Parker Harvard University

 (SIGNED)

NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY NAME AFFILIATION FOR IDENTIFICATION PURPOSES ONLY

Manuel Pastor University of Southern California Todd Sorenson University of Nevada, Reno

Karen Pfeifer Smith College William Spriggs Howard University

Peter Philips University of Utah Stephen Stamos Bucknell University

Anne M. Piehl Rutgers University David Stern University of California at Berkeley

Chiara Piovanni University of Denver Joseph Stiglitz Columbia University

Robert Pollin University of Massachusetts at Amherst Michael A. Stoll University of California at Los Angeles

Cristian Pop-Eleches Columbia University Myra Strober Stanford University

Elizabeth T. Powers University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign Woody Studenmund Occidental College

Anne Preston Haverford College Vera Tabakova East Carolina University

Mark Price Pennsylvania State Education Association Frank Thompson University of Michigan

Randall Reback Barnard College Stephen Trejo University of Texas at Austin

James B. Rebitzer Boston University Lesley J. Turner Vanderbilt University

Michael Reich University of California at Berkeley Laura Tyson University of California at Berkeley

Robert Reich University of California at Berkeley Yana van der Muelen Rodgers Rutgers University

Jennifer Reinganum Vanderbilt University Jack Ventura Surface Transportation Board (retired)

Tom Riddell Smith College Eric Verhoogen Columbia University

Maya Rockeymoore Global Policy Solutions Tom Vogl University of California at San Diego

Dani Rodrik Harvard University Norman J. Waitzman University of Utah

Stephen Rose George Washington University Neil Wallace Penn State University

Samuel Rosenberg Roosevelt University Ebonya Washington Yale University

Joshua L. Rosenbloom Iowa State University Thomas E. Weisskopf University of Michigan

Stephen Ross University of Connecticut John V. Wells U.S. Department of Transportation (retired).

Jesse Rothstein University of California at Berkeley Glen Weyl Microsoft OCTOPEST; Harvard University

Scott Rozelle Stanford University Charles K. Wilber University of Notre Dame

Christopher Ruhm University of Virginia Barbara L. Wolfe University of Wisconsin at Madison

Jeffrey Sachs Columbia University Marty Wolfson University of Notre Dame

Emmanuel Saez University of California at Berkeley Myrna Wooders Vanderbilt University

Jean Shackelford Bucknelll University Gavin Wright Stanford University

Nasrin Shahinpoor Hanover College Brenda Wyss Wheaton College

John Schmitt Economic Policy Institute Danny Yagan University of California at Berkeley

Markus Schneider University of Denver David Zalewski Providence College

Henning Schwardt University of Denver Andrew Zimbalist Smith College

Elliott Sclar Columbia University Gabriel Zucman University of California at Berkeley

Judith Scott-Clayton Teachers College Columbia University

Stephanie Seguino University of Vermont

M. Najeeb Shafiq University of Pittsburgh

Derek Shearer Occidental College

Heidi Shierholz Economic Policy Institute +++

Contact:
Timothy M. Smeeding University of Wisconsin at Madison
Martin Carnoy | mcarnoy1@[Link]
Lones Smith University of Wisconsin at Madison Michael Reich | [Link]@[Link]