Now, even if they don't, it will be an economic explosion in that section of PA and, with the voter reg already at a bare 73,000 D lead, that would vanish. PA would be red for 20 years. But AI and gas/nukes are the antithesis of what the (apparent) rank-and-file want, given the Axios story about them wanting their own reps to get thrown in jail and even (quote) "shot" while getting more radical. Hard to pursue such vastly divergent agendas.
Good article. And not to be nit picky but "live the best lives they possibly can", would be an unattainable standard. I ;live a very good life. However, to live my best life possible would mean play really good golf but for that I need new irons and that is not going to happen. Unrealistic expectations don't help. Like anyone can become president. High but realistic expectations of what your life can be is what is needed. Life gets much better when you learn to accept you have to live within your means.
The key to the "abundance" agenda, which should be bipartisan, is something former Campbell Soup CEO Doug Conant still teaches: Embracing the genius of the "and" and rejecting the tyranny of the "or." Until Democrats embrace a "both ways" or all-of-the-above approach to climate and environmental responsibility with an "all the above" energy strategy, and much more, they will be stuck in their "Small is Beautiful" mindset. A key is also getting the government out of the way of technological and related developments that will unleash an abundance agenda. It may be a leap too far, at least for the foreseeable future.
Cities produce innovation. Red states use the technology produced by the cities in blue states to make life better for “regular” people. There’s space and jobs in the “heartland”. But there wouldn’t be any of that if the cities didn’t provide the crowded places where innovators could interact. Government needs to recognize this. Jealousy and resentment from red states and condescension from blue states makes for a very unhealthy nation. Smoothing out the inequality that innovation produces is the job of government. Experimenting with government not destroying it is the answer. DOGE is exactly wrong.
The arrogance is so breathtaking, it is nearly comical. Are we to believe food and oil, overwhelmingly produced in rural areas, exist only due to city innovations? From where, pray tell, were they derived, prior to the establishment of US cities?
The jealousy and resentment of Red States? 20 years ago demographers assumed Texas would overtake CA in population in 2100. Today, 2 decades later, they assume Texas will be the most populace state sometime between 2045-2055.
Americans are on the move at a level rarely found in US history. They are quite literally, fleeing Blue States, over quality of life issues. Most growth is suburban, not urban.
It is a large country, that requires a multitude of skills, to perpetuate its' existence. Some are urban, some rural. Perhaps the issue is, most rural residents regularly visit cities, while clearly many city residents, have little experience or appreciation of rural America. Take a road trip and broaden your horizons, or perhaps refrain from insulting every non urban area of the US.
Innovation as measured by patents is more centered around universities then cities Yes if the surrounding area encourages cross pollination of ideas and opportunities for individuals to hop from place to place that supercharges innovation But after you get past California and Massachusetts for patent development per population the patent generation is equally distributed among red and blue states and usually centered around a key university there. California and Massachusetts are special cases. California really benefited from federal money coming from the defense department and Stanford university which happened during WW II and later. Massachusetts has three top universities near Boston which drive research money. Having really healthy universities seems to me more of a center for innovation however it is also true that the surrounding culture and infrastructure can have a significant impact on it which comes back to your point.
The goal of DOGE is to root out spending money on projects that are a waste/fraud/abuse instead of funding things that will improve our lives. All other measured approaches have failed. Note the issue with trying to pass a bill for a $9 billion claw back of federal funds. A few senators had to be bought off with their childish demands before it could pass. Reminds me of when there was Nebraska, my state, kickback to start the ACA. True or not, it is still believed to this day it happened.
A recently release Virginia poll found that the cost of living continues to be voters’ top concern, with reproductive rights and immigration also ranking high. Democratic candidate Spanberger, is touting an “Affordable Virginia Plan” that lays out her vision for lowering housing, energy and health care costs. She enjoys a 31 percentage point lead among voters aged 18-24 years old.
To me, "abundance" is just one more empty liberal slogan. Here in WA State, the Democrats are actively reducing the standard of living here with high taxes on fuel.
It's true that there are some obvious opponents of abundance on the left, the folks that either oppose development outright or just try to saddle it with so many requirements that it is almost impossible to build. However, one less noticed item in the debate is how much NIMBYism there is on the right. It is true that the pre-Trump right's laissez-faire attitude on development did lead to a lot of building. However, some segments of the Trumpian right really hate higher density development. Even the Supreme Leader himself made somme comment about "protecting the suburbs" which was seen as a slam on plans to develop multi-family housing.
Too simple a solution for the elite college educated elites that run the education system and social welfare to grasp. With a college degree, I preferred the hammer and nails of hands on construction and always did well and was able to put some money away. Too many 'menial' labor jobs that pay extremely well go unfilled because of the elitist thinking. They need to get down in the dirt with mainstream.
Yes, competition between the political parties to achieve abundance, like competition in all things, typically produces better results. We don't need to reach as far back as FDR for solid bipartisan evidence of that.
President Reagan's much undeservedly maligned supply-side economics produced prosperity of such magnitude that per capita charitable giving's rise to then record highs proved that when you permit Americans to keep more of their hard-earned money, they are generous about sharing it with others without being compelled by government redistributive edict to do so.
Fast forward 10 years and President Clinton, hand-in-hand with a GOP Congress, facilitated by way of regulation repeal and tax incentives a dot.com boom that brought us the first and last balanced budget even as spending grew every year of his presidency; the consequence of revenue abundancy.
President Trump's reciprocal tarriffs saw the U.S. come out some $26 trillion in the black on trade last month, another milestone.
In their competition for abundance, Democrats and Republicans should be able to see and agree that the biggest hurdle to achieving it is the radtical politics of the far Left and Right.
Abundant energy and jobs doesn't necessarily lead to financial security for the working class, especially if we continue to import millions of low wage workers. Ezra's abundance is driven by grads not being able to afford a condo in Manhattan of a house in Malibu. I like the kind of abundance sold by that Mamdani commie running for mayor of NY. A $30 min would do a lot more for the working class than exhortations to "learn to code" which we've all heard before.
In WA State, diesel costs $5/gallon and there's a 20% tax on the propane that heats my house when it gets cold. In Idaho, diesel goes for $3.75, and in South Dakota $3. The Democratic Party hates the standard of living.
The reason it is so expensive to live in DC is every time congress gives themselves or government employees a raise, the cost of living in DC is goes up to match the raise. When in the military, one extra pay was separate rats. That included how much each rank could spend on housing. Ever time separate rats went up, rent went up to match it. A $30 per hour minimum would just produce a $30 per hour life style. Nothing changes just costs more.
Here are some policies that will help create the foundations for stable and secure families in the U.S. Make it easier to build things by modernizing environmental laws written for the 1970s. Expand Medicaid to assure affordable health care is widely available. Don't protect wasteful large agricultural operations through tariffs. Don't militarize politicized deportation activities and create labor shortages in needed areas like construction, agriculture and health.
I live in a red gulf coast southern state … where I live there is constant construction. Both housing and businesses … mostly retail, restaurants etc. Starting to see trickles of other kinds of businesses as well which is needed
Son lives in Oregon … there was little to no new construction that we saw … as the article says, the regulatory environment plus NIMBY coalition makes it too costly to build new housing … housing is in short supply and therefore expensive. They would like to stay in Oregon, it is beautiful, but they worry about housing costs
My spouse owns a condo in Beaverton. He keeps it vacant because Oregon instituted laws that, in essence, told small-time landlords that they were targeted for harassment and worse. Given that at least half of the state's rental units are owned by mom & pops, and new construction is often in the form of additions or so-called "accessory dwelling units," the result has been a screeching halt to new housing construction other than ultra-luxury buildings.
Oregon's "progressive" Democrats truly hate the little people at every level. They are just as bad as the Democrats in California. And now they hate business. Plus they are so incompetent in K-12 education that public school enrollment is declining fast while home schooling is booming. Will they learn anything? Hell no. "Progressives" never, ever question themselves at any level.
Thanks for the information … that is indeed sad. I cannot understand why they cannot see this? I can see my son trying to figure it out… he is in AI and works from home so he could live anywhere
Also I prepared his taxes … apparently Oregon seeks to have a more ‘equitable tax code’ and would like to know your ethnicity?? So what exactly does this mean … if you are white they want to tax you more?
The bottleneck for abundance is electricity. Trying to electrify everything while stifling generation and transmission is never going to work. Add in the NIMBYs of Right and Left plus the preservation people and you have stalemate.
Oregon forced renewables at the expense of converting a big coal plant to gas. Electricity rates have risen by 50% in five years, and disconnections are up 20-fold. But the rich "progressives" of Portland and Salem are happy. Oh yeah, some "abundance." What a fraud.
Thanks. Haven’t followed Polis, but I don’t see that labor is opposing Governor Newson in California enforcing current: wage, OSHA, environmental and child labor laws. No point in thinking up new programs, when you are not enforcing current laws. Maybe the governor could pick one, ending child labor in California marijuana farms and piggyback on ICE efforts to remove criminals. For child labor to be ignored in California is an epic scandal.
Pollis has done some good things with ADUs and no max per house, despite having unlimited space to grow housing prices are 20% higher than the country as a whole and there are many on the street who are not crazy nor drunks nor addicts but people living and working out of their cars.
He vetoed a bill that sought to prohibit Medicaid from covering gender-affirming care. He's on X constantly urging people to get out and protest. Another looney.
He is very popular in KY. Right now the only thing he posts on X is progressive crap - what are his positions on immigration, men in women sports, raising taxes, cutting fraud? He will be going up against a slew of Dems in the primary who all hate Trump - what differentiates him?
MAGAheads are obsessively focused on transgender women playing sports. While it gets the base riled up it has a very marginal impact on competitive races in general elections. Look at recent polling in VA to verify that the issues are cost of living, reproductive rights and immigrant deportation.
I agree trans is a marginal issue, but it predicts how he's going to vote on a whole host of other issues. And I think abortion is a dead horse, you've gotten just about all the mileage you're going to get out of it. Planned Parenthood is on the chopping block.
Dems vote as a bloc on every single issue, there is not a dissenting voice in the entire party. Swing to left, continue to lose.
John, while you speak in terms of general theories about how to create abundance, President Trump marches ahead creating it. Today, it was announced that Pittsburgh, PA is moving to use gas and nukes to become the AI center of the country. https://blackmon.substack.com/p/pittsburgh-plans-to-become-a-major?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=712558&post_id=168470364&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=false&r=dx45b&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email
Now, even if they don't, it will be an economic explosion in that section of PA and, with the voter reg already at a bare 73,000 D lead, that would vanish. PA would be red for 20 years. But AI and gas/nukes are the antithesis of what the (apparent) rank-and-file want, given the Axios story about them wanting their own reps to get thrown in jail and even (quote) "shot" while getting more radical. Hard to pursue such vastly divergent agendas.
Good article. And not to be nit picky but "live the best lives they possibly can", would be an unattainable standard. I ;live a very good life. However, to live my best life possible would mean play really good golf but for that I need new irons and that is not going to happen. Unrealistic expectations don't help. Like anyone can become president. High but realistic expectations of what your life can be is what is needed. Life gets much better when you learn to accept you have to live within your means.
The key to the "abundance" agenda, which should be bipartisan, is something former Campbell Soup CEO Doug Conant still teaches: Embracing the genius of the "and" and rejecting the tyranny of the "or." Until Democrats embrace a "both ways" or all-of-the-above approach to climate and environmental responsibility with an "all the above" energy strategy, and much more, they will be stuck in their "Small is Beautiful" mindset. A key is also getting the government out of the way of technological and related developments that will unleash an abundance agenda. It may be a leap too far, at least for the foreseeable future.
Cities produce innovation. Red states use the technology produced by the cities in blue states to make life better for “regular” people. There’s space and jobs in the “heartland”. But there wouldn’t be any of that if the cities didn’t provide the crowded places where innovators could interact. Government needs to recognize this. Jealousy and resentment from red states and condescension from blue states makes for a very unhealthy nation. Smoothing out the inequality that innovation produces is the job of government. Experimenting with government not destroying it is the answer. DOGE is exactly wrong.
The arrogance is so breathtaking, it is nearly comical. Are we to believe food and oil, overwhelmingly produced in rural areas, exist only due to city innovations? From where, pray tell, were they derived, prior to the establishment of US cities?
The jealousy and resentment of Red States? 20 years ago demographers assumed Texas would overtake CA in population in 2100. Today, 2 decades later, they assume Texas will be the most populace state sometime between 2045-2055.
Americans are on the move at a level rarely found in US history. They are quite literally, fleeing Blue States, over quality of life issues. Most growth is suburban, not urban.
It is a large country, that requires a multitude of skills, to perpetuate its' existence. Some are urban, some rural. Perhaps the issue is, most rural residents regularly visit cities, while clearly many city residents, have little experience or appreciation of rural America. Take a road trip and broaden your horizons, or perhaps refrain from insulting every non urban area of the US.
Urban areas produce law, finance, entertainment, and sexual theme parks for young adults. Lots of GDP but noting real.
Innovation as measured by patents is more centered around universities then cities Yes if the surrounding area encourages cross pollination of ideas and opportunities for individuals to hop from place to place that supercharges innovation But after you get past California and Massachusetts for patent development per population the patent generation is equally distributed among red and blue states and usually centered around a key university there. California and Massachusetts are special cases. California really benefited from federal money coming from the defense department and Stanford university which happened during WW II and later. Massachusetts has three top universities near Boston which drive research money. Having really healthy universities seems to me more of a center for innovation however it is also true that the surrounding culture and infrastructure can have a significant impact on it which comes back to your point.
The goal of DOGE is to root out spending money on projects that are a waste/fraud/abuse instead of funding things that will improve our lives. All other measured approaches have failed. Note the issue with trying to pass a bill for a $9 billion claw back of federal funds. A few senators had to be bought off with their childish demands before it could pass. Reminds me of when there was Nebraska, my state, kickback to start the ACA. True or not, it is still believed to this day it happened.
A recently release Virginia poll found that the cost of living continues to be voters’ top concern, with reproductive rights and immigration also ranking high. Democratic candidate Spanberger, is touting an “Affordable Virginia Plan” that lays out her vision for lowering housing, energy and health care costs. She enjoys a 31 percentage point lead among voters aged 18-24 years old.
To me, "abundance" is just one more empty liberal slogan. Here in WA State, the Democrats are actively reducing the standard of living here with high taxes on fuel.
It's true that there are some obvious opponents of abundance on the left, the folks that either oppose development outright or just try to saddle it with so many requirements that it is almost impossible to build. However, one less noticed item in the debate is how much NIMBYism there is on the right. It is true that the pre-Trump right's laissez-faire attitude on development did lead to a lot of building. However, some segments of the Trumpian right really hate higher density development. Even the Supreme Leader himself made somme comment about "protecting the suburbs" which was seen as a slam on plans to develop multi-family housing.
Too simple a solution for the elite college educated elites that run the education system and social welfare to grasp. With a college degree, I preferred the hammer and nails of hands on construction and always did well and was able to put some money away. Too many 'menial' labor jobs that pay extremely well go unfilled because of the elitist thinking. They need to get down in the dirt with mainstream.
Great piece!!! The perfect example of NIMBY is on Martha's Vineyard when the illegal migrants arrived. Hilarious. Go Dems!!!
Go immigrants! No, really go...
Yes, competition between the political parties to achieve abundance, like competition in all things, typically produces better results. We don't need to reach as far back as FDR for solid bipartisan evidence of that.
President Reagan's much undeservedly maligned supply-side economics produced prosperity of such magnitude that per capita charitable giving's rise to then record highs proved that when you permit Americans to keep more of their hard-earned money, they are generous about sharing it with others without being compelled by government redistributive edict to do so.
Fast forward 10 years and President Clinton, hand-in-hand with a GOP Congress, facilitated by way of regulation repeal and tax incentives a dot.com boom that brought us the first and last balanced budget even as spending grew every year of his presidency; the consequence of revenue abundancy.
President Trump's reciprocal tarriffs saw the U.S. come out some $26 trillion in the black on trade last month, another milestone.
In their competition for abundance, Democrats and Republicans should be able to see and agree that the biggest hurdle to achieving it is the radtical politics of the far Left and Right.
A very tenuous connection at best.
Abundant energy and jobs doesn't necessarily lead to financial security for the working class, especially if we continue to import millions of low wage workers. Ezra's abundance is driven by grads not being able to afford a condo in Manhattan of a house in Malibu. I like the kind of abundance sold by that Mamdani commie running for mayor of NY. A $30 min would do a lot more for the working class than exhortations to "learn to code" which we've all heard before.
“Learn to code” has gone down the drain with the rise of AI.
In WA State, diesel costs $5/gallon and there's a 20% tax on the propane that heats my house when it gets cold. In Idaho, diesel goes for $3.75, and in South Dakota $3. The Democratic Party hates the standard of living.
The reason it is so expensive to live in DC is every time congress gives themselves or government employees a raise, the cost of living in DC is goes up to match the raise. When in the military, one extra pay was separate rats. That included how much each rank could spend on housing. Ever time separate rats went up, rent went up to match it. A $30 per hour minimum would just produce a $30 per hour life style. Nothing changes just costs more.
Here are some policies that will help create the foundations for stable and secure families in the U.S. Make it easier to build things by modernizing environmental laws written for the 1970s. Expand Medicaid to assure affordable health care is widely available. Don't protect wasteful large agricultural operations through tariffs. Don't militarize politicized deportation activities and create labor shortages in needed areas like construction, agriculture and health.
I live in a red gulf coast southern state … where I live there is constant construction. Both housing and businesses … mostly retail, restaurants etc. Starting to see trickles of other kinds of businesses as well which is needed
Son lives in Oregon … there was little to no new construction that we saw … as the article says, the regulatory environment plus NIMBY coalition makes it too costly to build new housing … housing is in short supply and therefore expensive. They would like to stay in Oregon, it is beautiful, but they worry about housing costs
My spouse owns a condo in Beaverton. He keeps it vacant because Oregon instituted laws that, in essence, told small-time landlords that they were targeted for harassment and worse. Given that at least half of the state's rental units are owned by mom & pops, and new construction is often in the form of additions or so-called "accessory dwelling units," the result has been a screeching halt to new housing construction other than ultra-luxury buildings.
Oregon's "progressive" Democrats truly hate the little people at every level. They are just as bad as the Democrats in California. And now they hate business. Plus they are so incompetent in K-12 education that public school enrollment is declining fast while home schooling is booming. Will they learn anything? Hell no. "Progressives" never, ever question themselves at any level.
Thanks for the information … that is indeed sad. I cannot understand why they cannot see this? I can see my son trying to figure it out… he is in AI and works from home so he could live anywhere
Also I prepared his taxes … apparently Oregon seeks to have a more ‘equitable tax code’ and would like to know your ethnicity?? So what exactly does this mean … if you are white they want to tax you more?
The bottleneck for abundance is electricity. Trying to electrify everything while stifling generation and transmission is never going to work. Add in the NIMBYs of Right and Left plus the preservation people and you have stalemate.
Oregon forced renewables at the expense of converting a big coal plant to gas. Electricity rates have risen by 50% in five years, and disconnections are up 20-fold. But the rich "progressives" of Portland and Salem are happy. Oh yeah, some "abundance." What a fraud.
More supply can improve affordability. But also assuring there is not monopoly manipulation of market prices regardless of supply.
Which blue state governor has started down the abundance path already? Who should we be watching and applauding?
Colorado's Jared Polis has been talking about it for a while. https://coloradonewsline.com/2025/05/09/how-colorados-housing-supply-politics-contradict-the-abundance-narrative/
Even Gavin Newsom has gotten in on the action. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/26/abundance-movement-hits-a-labor-wall-in-california-00428602
Of course, both have experienced resistance, which isn't that surprising.
Thanks. Haven’t followed Polis, but I don’t see that labor is opposing Governor Newson in California enforcing current: wage, OSHA, environmental and child labor laws. No point in thinking up new programs, when you are not enforcing current laws. Maybe the governor could pick one, ending child labor in California marijuana farms and piggyback on ICE efforts to remove criminals. For child labor to be ignored in California is an epic scandal.
The "abundance" talk bears all the hallmarks of bullshit slogans dreamed up by Democratic Party consultants in Washington, D.C.
Pollis has done some good things with ADUs and no max per house, despite having unlimited space to grow housing prices are 20% higher than the country as a whole and there are many on the street who are not crazy nor drunks nor addicts but people living and working out of their cars.
What about Andy Bashear?
He vetoed a bill that sought to prohibit Medicaid from covering gender-affirming care. He's on X constantly urging people to get out and protest. Another looney.
The voters of Kentucky like him by a large margin. He would do well in Ohio, Pennsylvania and North Carolina.
He is very popular in KY. Right now the only thing he posts on X is progressive crap - what are his positions on immigration, men in women sports, raising taxes, cutting fraud? He will be going up against a slew of Dems in the primary who all hate Trump - what differentiates him?
MAGAheads are obsessively focused on transgender women playing sports. While it gets the base riled up it has a very marginal impact on competitive races in general elections. Look at recent polling in VA to verify that the issues are cost of living, reproductive rights and immigrant deportation.
I agree trans is a marginal issue, but it predicts how he's going to vote on a whole host of other issues. And I think abortion is a dead horse, you've gotten just about all the mileage you're going to get out of it. Planned Parenthood is on the chopping block.
Dems vote as a bloc on every single issue, there is not a dissenting voice in the entire party. Swing to left, continue to lose.