The Wolf at the Door

The Menace of Economic Insecurity and How to Fight It

Michael J. Graetz, Ian Shapiro

• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9780674260429
  9780674980884
• eBook ISBN:
  9780674246997
• Topic: Politics & International Relations
• Subtopic: Economic Policy
• Index: Politics & International Relations

"Deep, informed, and reeks of common sense."
—Norman Ornstein

"It is now beyond debate that rising inequality is not only leaving millions of Americans living on a sharp edge but also is threatening our democracy…For activists and scholars alike who are struggling to create a more equitable society, this is an essential read."
—David Gergen

We are in an age of crisis. That much we can agree on. But a crisis of what, exactly? And how do we get out of it?

In a follow up to their influential and much debated Death by a Thousand Cuts, Michael Graetz and Ian Shapiro focus on what really worries people: not what the rich are making or the government is taking from them but their own insecurity. Americans are worried about losing their jobs, their status, and the safety of their communities. They fear the wolf at the door. The solution is not protectionism or class warfare but better jobs, higher wages, greater protection for families suffering from unemployment, better health insurance, and higher quality childcare. And it turns out those goals are more achievable than you might think. The Wolf at the Door is one of those rare books that doesn't just diagnose our problems, it shows how to address them.

"This is a terrific book, original, erudite, and superbly well-informed, and full of new wisdom about what might and what might not help the majority of Americans who have not shared in our growing prosperity, but are left facing the wolf at the door…Everyone interested in public policy should read this book."
—Angus Deaton, Princeton University

"Graetz and Shapiro wrestle with a fundamental question of our day: How do we address a system that makes too many Americans anxious that economic security is slipping out of reach? Their cogent call for sensible and achievable policies…should be read by progressives and conservatives alike."
—Jacob J. Lew, former Secretary of the Treasury

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter One. Then and Now
• Chapter Two. Building Blocks of Distributive Politics
• Chapter Three. Good Politics, Wrong Policy
• Chapter Four. The Essential Role of Business
• Chapter Five. Making Work Pay
• Chapter Six. From Unemployment to Reemployment
• Chapter Seven. Waiting for Infrastructure
• Chapter Eight. What More Is to Be Done?
• Chapter Nine. Paying for Change—or Not
• Chapter Ten. The Wages of Insecurity
• Glossary
• Notes
• Acknowledgments
• Index