Julius Krein, founder and editor of American Affairs, joins Clearer Than Truth to examine why the United States has struggled to rebuild its industrial base even as the case for reindustrialization has entered the mainstream. Krein argues that tariffs alone cannot restore American productive capacity: the country needs strategic investment, skilled workers, coordinated supply chains, permitting reform, and institutions that can help critical industries become commercially viable. He explains why the goal should not be to centrally plan the entire economy, but to open opportunities for private investment in sectors weakened by decades of underinvestment. The conversation explores the political costs and potential benefits of rebuilding manufacturing, whether a more productive economy could narrow class divides, and how the United States might redirect its financial resources to compete with China. Krein’s broader message is that America has made progress in recognizing the problem, but the real test is whether it can overcome institutional bottlenecks and deliver tangible results before political support fades.

00:00 Julius Krein on Rebuilding American Industry
01:01 Has Industrial Policy Finally Gone Mainstream?
02:08 Why Rebuilding Industry Could Take Decades
03:24 From Fringe Idea to National Priority
04:07 The Problem With Tariff-First Economics
05:04 Why Tariffs Alone Won’t Rebuild Manufacturing
06:22 The Real Costs of Trade Policy
07:35 What a Real Reindustrialization Strategy Requires
08:30 Why Critical Industries Lost Their Investment
09:31 The Missing Pieces: Workers, Buyers, and Permits
10:00 Why America Struggles to Coordinate Economic Policy
11:00 Why Supply Chains Are Harder to Map Than They Look
12:16 What Happens When Everything Becomes Strategic?
12:48 Why America Needs More Than Free Markets
13:54 The Industries America Can Rebuild First
14:57 Industrial Policy Without Central Planning
15:31 Who Pays for Reindustrialization?
16:49 The Political Trade-Offs of Rebuilding Industry
18:08 The Long-Term Cost of Deindustrialization
18:57 Will Working-Class Americans Actually Benefit?
20:21 Can Manufacturing Narrow the Class Divide?
21:48 Building an Economy That Works Across Classes
22:16 What Does American Economic Nationalism Mean?
23:03 Why Different Political Camps Support Industrial Policy
24:14 Why Practical Needs Can Matter More Than Ideology
25:10 Is Pragmatism Driving American Industrial Policy?
26:34 Can America Compete With China’s Economic Model?
27:13 Why American Finance Could Help Rebuild Industry
28:28 China’s Manufacturing Strength—and Its Limits
28:55 What the U.S. Must Prove to China
30:19 Can America Fund Long-Term Industrial Growth?
31:07 How Realistic Is American Reindustrialization?
32:08 The Bottlenecks Still Holding America Back
32:59 The Race to Deliver Results
33:46 Why American Affairs Matters

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