ABSTRACT
Public concern for industrial policies seems to arise with bad economic conditions. Economists often oppose industrial policies as government intervention because they tend to favor the market to solve economic problems. When comparing industrial policy in Europe and the United States, considerable similarities and differences emerge. Jeffrey E. Cohen and Gregory G. Brunk show that the American industrial complex has been suffering for over a decade with massive trade deficits and declining jobs and productivity. A comprehensive industrial policy might be more desirable if the United States were a more corporatist and centralized society, but the obstacles are many. Lawrence is skeptical about whether the United States can or should have an industrial policy. Proponents of an industrial policy argue that a nation that casually surrenders leading industrial positions through policies of neglect will find it difficult to stage a comeback, particularly if it falls into long periods of noncompetitiveness.
