The Gist

Work Harder, America

Adam Davidson explains what Jeb Bush doesn’t understand about the relationship between productivity and capitalism.

Republican Presidential candidate Jeb Bush.

Photo by Kayana Szymczak/Getty Images.

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Are Americans not working hard enough? Jeb Bush told the New Hampshire Union Leader, “Workforce participation has to rise from its all-time modern lows. It means that people need to work longer hours and through their productivity gain more income for their families.” We call in Adam Davidson to explain how economists understand our historic lows in workforce participation. He’s a contributor to the New York Times Magazine and a founder of NPR’s Planet Money.

Also, Adam Davidson is hosting a new podcast with Adam McKay called Awesome Boring. Here’s a teaser.

For the Spiel, the warning signs along the road to Billy Joel Boulevard.

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