Suzanne Kahn
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Articles by Suzanne Kahn
How Colorado Tailored Its Childcare Plan to Serve Its Families
Ensuring universal access to childcare is an ambitious policy goal. But ambitious does not mean impossible. Public access to high-quality, affordable childcare is a necessary part of a good life for American families. In this interview series, we speak with childcare implementers and system builders around the country to help shed light on what it takes to make a public childcare system work—not just the concept of it, but the nuts and bolts. You can read the other installments here.
Where States Are Innovating on Childcare: Lessons for a National Universal Childcare Policy
The US ranks 40th out of 41 comparably wealthy nations in offering accessible, affordable, and quality childcare. Childcare is essential infrastructure; it not only allows parents to work, attend school, and gain financial stability, but it is also a necessary building block of healthy child development.
Funding Social Security with More Than Just Payroll Taxes
To address Social Security’s projected trust fund depletion through changes to benefits, policymakers have typically focused on a familiar set of reform levers: changing the benefit formula—either the initial calculation or how benefits grow after claiming—or changing eligibility rules, such as the early retirement age or who qualifies for spousal and survivor benefits.
Closing the Contribution Gap: Misclassification, Pass-Throughs, and Social Security
Much of the debate over how to close Social Security’s funding gap has focused on lifting the cap on the payroll tax, so higher earners contribute more. Less attention has been paid to another potential source of revenue: labor income that falls outside Social Security’s contribution base when workers are misclassified or when business owners take pay for their work as profit rather than wages.
Fixing the Tax Max: Restoring Social Security’s Wage Base
Social Security’s Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) trust fund reserve will be depleted in six years, according to the latest estimates. Avoiding benefit cuts requires aligning revenues with benefit payments to eliminate the financing gap. While some politicians claim benefits must be cut to resolve the funding shortfall, that approach is neither popular with the American public nor reflective of the root causes of the financing gap.
In Mississippi, Advocates Fight for Childcare Despite Austerity
Ensuring universal access to childcare is an ambitious policy goal. But ambitious does not mean impossible. Public access to high-quality, affordable childcare is a necessary part of a good lifefor American families. In this interview series, we speak with childcare implementers and system builders around the country to help shed light on what it takes to make a public childcare system work—not just the concept of it, but the nuts and bolts. You can read the first two installments here.
“Sound, Needy, and Patriotic Legislation”: Preserving the Fundamental Promises of the Social Security System
The Social Security Act, passed in 1935, created a system of social insurance free of means testing. Workers contribute through payroll taxes and receive benefits as a protected public entitlement. Social Security has never been a static program. Its architects expected it to evolve, and major amendments expanded coverage, increased benefits, and adapted the program to economic conditions.
The Care Cascade: Interviews from Our Broken Care System
The US care system functions through a “care cascade.” The US relies on a DIY model of care that pushes responsibility downstream. Rather than treating care as a collective obligation, the system expects families to purchase or provide whatever care they need and absorb the costs when they can’t. The cascade shifts care from men onto women. The current system reinforces long-standing gender inequalities by making it easier for men to prioritize paid work while women become default caregivers.
How Did Universal Childcare Survive Attack?
Universal childcare in New York City became politically durable because families experienced its benefits directly and visibly. The program’s universality, ease of access, and public delivery helped transform childcare from a targeted service into a broadly recognized public good. The success in NYC stems from a policy design framework that shapes political outcomes.
The Good Life Agenda: Making Life’s Essentials Affordable
A good life requires more than the essentials. But when those essentials—like housing, education, and care for loved ones—are out of reach, it’s hard to think beyond them. Our agenda for affordable essentials establishes the foundation we need to have agency in our lives. We should be able to live near the people we love, not struggling to secure an apartment a hefty commute away, at rents that leave little left for saving.
The Good Life Agenda: Executive Summary
“Our agenda focuses relentlessly on giving Americans the building blocks of a good life: affordable access to quality goods and services, strong and stable incomes, and time to spend with loved ones and doing what gives us purpose.” – Elizabeth Wilkins, Roosevelt Institute President and CEO, and coauthor of The Good Life Agenda The Good Life Agenda is a blueprint for our economy and democracy to do what they’re supposed to: make people’s lives better.
The Good Life Agenda: Reclaiming Time for What Matters
The average middle-class American couple with children works a combined 600 paid hours a year more today than they did in 1975. This means that in the last 50 years, American families have essentially added over four months of paid work a year to their calendars without any similarly significant shift in the kind of support that families receive. Those hours have to come from somewhere.
The Good Life Agenda: Reviving the Governing Tools and Capacities We Need
The narrow, indirect tools policymakers have relied on since the ’70s have proven they’re not up to the job. Funneling subsidies to consumers through the tax code hasn’t maintained an adequate housing supply. Awarding incentives to private companies to deliver what should be public goods has empowered corporations but failed to make medical care affordable.
The Good Life Agenda: Boosting Incomes Throughout Our Lives
Steady income does more than cover the bills. It gives people breathing room. Without it, changing jobs, caring for family, or planning for retirement can feel risky. Our agenda for stable incomes starts from a simple premise: People should have more control over their economic lives.
The Good Life Agenda
What should be the goal of US economic policy? It shouldn’t be to maximize GDP: Economic growth is good, but it’s a means to an end, not the end itself. Even “affordability” is too narrow a concern. It matters immensely, but it’s not the whole story. No, economics is ultimately about people, and the purpose of economic policy should be to help people live good lives. Franklin D. Roosevelt and his allies understood the importance of a wider, people-focused agenda.
Fact Sheet: Who’s Minding the Kids These Days?
Policymakers, advocates, and journalists have had access to data on childcare prices for years, but nationally representative information on the care arrangements families actually use is sparse. The Census Bureau once regularly summarized this kind of childcare data in public-facing “Who’s Minding the Kids?” reports, but the most recent version relied on data collected in 2011. Roosevelt’s new report by Sarah Jane Glynn, Who’s Minding the Kids These Days?, fills that gap.
The Public Options Tool Kit: Ensuring Access, Public Value, and Accountability in the Economy
This is a web-friendly preview of the report.
The Collective Power of Childcare Workers and Their Communities: A Case Study of California
For too long, the US has seen childcare as a problem for the private market. But that market has failed in every way. Childcare remains unaffordable, exceeding families’ costs of housing in most of the country. Childcare workers are not paid a living wage, leading to massive workforce shortages, which result in half of families living in a childcare desert.
The Institutional Foundations of Free Speech at Public Universities
This is a web-friendly preview of the report. As political repression worsens, building resilient universities will require institutional creativity. In an era of eroding norms, exploitative settlements, tightly coordinated attacks on left-wing ideology, and the suppression and even detainment of student protestors, defending free speech demands thoughtful redesign rather than simple policy fixes. Public universities are not uniquely vulnerable to speech repression.
Running Out of People
Since Donald Trump regained the White House, news consumers have been inundated with stories about “pronatalism”—the ideology and movement gaining ground on the right that views falling birth rates as an existential crisis and encourages families to have more children. Trump has called himself the “fertilization president”; his ex-henchman Elon Musk has 14 children (give or take); and Vice President J. D. Vance has called for more children to be born and derided childless women.
15 Years After Citizens United: Big Money’s Grip on Our Democracy
Pro-business policies: Citizens United created a natural experiment: In states that threw out independent expenditure laws after the ruling, lawmakers cut corporate tax rates by 4 to 8 percent and passed business-friendly tort laws, while unrelated policies (for example, gun control) saw no change. Shifts in representation: In states forced to remove bans on independent spending, outside money surged by about double the increase seen elsewhere.
Citizens United and the Decline of US Democracy: Assessing the Decision’s Impact 15 Years Later
This is a web-friendly preview of the report. The 2024 federal elections saw the highest level of billionaire spending in American history. In an effort to influence outcomes, billionaire donors and their families spent over $2.6 billion—a figure amounting to nearly 20 percent of total federal election spending that cycle.
The Neoliberalization of Higher Education: Changes in State Funding and Governance Throughout the 20th Century
This is a web-friendly preview of the report. The Trump administration and its allies are attempting to dismantle much of the US higher education system and place the remainder under the control of right-wing ideologues. Even if they do not realize their greatest ambitions, they have already transformed the landscape of higher education at both the state and federal levels.
What “Risk Aversion” Gets Wrong About the Racial Wealth Gap
This socioeconomic model only explains about 10 percent of risk willingness. However, the race model only explains 1 percent. Black and Latinx respondents were less likely to have above-average and average risk willingness than White respondents, but Black respondents were also less likely to be risk averse than White respondents. The descriptive statistics and regression models above demonstrate that risk willingness is not simply a factor of race, but also one of socioeconomic status.
Public Debilitation
Public Debilitation Rebuilding government decision-making power requires not just removing veto points, but also addressing the outsized corporate power that gives the wealthy the best access to policymakers. ▪ Fall 2025 A crowd attempts to board trains at Penn Station in New York City. (Adam Gray/Getty Images) Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress—and How to Bring It Back by Marc J. Dunkelman PublicAffairs, 2025, 416 pp.
Opinion | JD Vance is putting a new spin on Trump’s wildly unpopular megabill
You know a piece of legislation is in trouble when lawmakers start backtracking just weeks after passing it. But with far more Americans opposed to the reconciliation bill President Trump signed this month than in favor of it, GOP politicians are moving to limit the political blowback. Republicans are trying to convince voters that the bill that guts social programs like Medicaid and SNAP actually helps working families.
The Future of the Care Economy: Public Investment in Families and Workers
Half of US families live in childcare deserts, and in most regions, care now costs more than housing, food, or transportation. Meanwhile, 88 percent of working parents have jobs outside school hours while after-school care remains out of reach. Working families hardly have room in their budgets to pay for—much less sustain and grow—the vital care services they need.
Building a Vision for Universal Public Childcare: Principles for a Childcare System That Works for Workers and Families
Executive Summary Introduction A Vision for Universal Public Childcare Table 1. Evaluating Childcare Proposals Using Principles of a Public Universal System Acknowledgements The current early childhood care and education (ECE) system in the US is broken. Families struggle to access and afford ECE, and ECE providers across the workforce struggle to get by on chronically low wages. Half of families live in a childcare desert.
“Have You Ever Considered How You Might Transition Your Business to a New Owner?”
Introduction and Background Potential Models I. Create a Childcare Acquisition Marketplace and Offer Technical Assistance II. Support Childcare-Focused Real Estate Investment Trusts—with Strong Guardrails III. Allow Public Grant Dollars to Be Used for Childcare Acquisitions in Priority Areas IV. Elevate Opportunities to Transition to Worker- or Parent-Owned Cooperatives V. Create a Childcare Ownership Transition Fund VI.
Whole Child, Whole Day, Whole Year: Assembling a Comprehensive Child Development System for America
Executive Summary There is a fundamental mismatch between the K-12 public school schedule and the professional hours typically worked by parents. Children are in school from ages 5 to 18, school days mostly end by 3:00 pm, and classes stop for two months in the summer. Parents must piece together a safe place for their children during those nonschool times.
Direct Spending on Care Work: Thinking Beyond the Tax Code for Caregiving Infrastructure
Executive Summary Addressing the caregiving crisis facing tens of millions of working- and middle-class families—and the entire United States—will require robust and well-designed policy solutions. This report highlights the economic and well-being impacts of the current lack of affordable, high-quality care choices, with a focus on paid family leave, childcare, and long-term care infrastructure.
Market Failure - Dissent Magazine
Market Failure A discussion between Brett Christophers and Adam Tooze, moderated by Kate Aronoff, about the climate crisis and the limits of capitalism. , and ▪ February 24, 2025 The following is an edited transcript of Market Failure: The Climate Crisis and the Limits of Capitalism, a conversation held on October 26, 2024, at The New School for Social Research. An audio recording of the conversation is available here.
Silicon Valley’s Deal with the Devil: How Tech Billionaires Aligned with Misogyny and MAGA
In 2017, The New York Times published its exposé on Harvey Weinstein’s sexual predations, sparking the viral #MeToo movement and revelations of how pervasive sexual harassment remains in the workplace. The same year, with much less fanfare, future Federal Trade Commission (FTC) commissioner Lina Khan published an article arguing that Amazon had gotten too big.
It's the Fear, Stupid: Why Biden’s FDR-Size Aspirations Fell Short
When Joe Biden entered office four years ago, FDR comparisons were everywhere. We at the Roosevelt Institute even briefly asked our followers to guess whether a quote belonged to FDR or Biden. As we close out Biden’s one-term presidency, we thought it would be a good moment for a more sober reflection on the comparison. At the start of his term, the analogy between Biden and FDR was almost overused.
Legalized Murder
Legalized Murder If the motive for the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson is the denial of coverage for essential medical services, what does it say that there could be tens of millions of suspects? ▪ December 6, 2024 Apart from the executions of certain notorious criminals and the deaths of certain despots and terrorists, I can’t recall any public death provoking the approval that has greeted the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York City on December 4.
A Man's Economy - Dissent Magazine
A Man’s Economy The parts of the Biden agenda most targeted at addressing women’s economic vulnerabilities were never passed. ▪ December 5, 2024 Election night in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where I live, was unseasonably warm, so I “slept” with my windows open. As a result, I came to understand what was happening to the country when I started to hear a fraternity set off fireworks every time another state was called for Donald Trump.
Rewiring Regulation: Regulatory Review for a New Political Economy
Introduction In recent years, the executive branch has become an increasingly central focus for policymaking on both the left and the right. Among progressive advocates, there has been a growing attention to how executive action might help advance progressive priorities, from climate to racial and gender equity to imbalances of economic power, and more.
Why Harris’s Medicare at Home Plan Is the Next Frontier of Industrial Policy
At a dinner party a year ago, I argued that if someone under the age of 75 (ahem, 82) were running for president, they would be running on finally fixing long-term care. On Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris (59) announced a new plan, Medicare at Home, that will bring long-term care coverage fully into Medicare—notably a benefit most Americans already believe they have.
Yale Conference Explores Tax Policy Changes and Election Stakes
When voters consider candidates for November’s presidential and congressional elections, they won’t just be deciding who occupies the White House and which party controls Congress. They will also be shaping the future of U.S. tax and budget policy. Many of the key provisions of the big 2017 tax bill passed by President Donald Trump and a Republican Congress are set to expire next year.
Roosevelt Institute Welcomes New Director of Democratic Institutions and Director of Stratification Economics
New York, NY—As economic policy continues to drive public debate, the Roosevelt Institute’s think tank is excited to announce the addition of two highly accomplished leaders to its growing team. Bilal Baydoun joins the Roosevelt Institute as its director of democratic institutions. In this new role, he will oversee research on improving democratic governance, strengthening democratic institutions, and curbing the corrosive influence of private power on democracy.
What Is Government For? A Reading List for a More Democratic Economic Vision
The Right has some big ideas about small government. For decades, conservative forces have shrunk federal authority and constrained the government’s ability to govern—tilting society’s power balance toward corporations that prioritize profits, not people. This year’s Supreme Court rulings—such as the reversal of the Chevron precedent—have accelerated this trend, gutting regulatory power by limiting federal agencies and the executive branch’s ability to enforce rules that protect the public.
Roosevelt Institute Welcomes Michael Madowitz as New Principal Economist
New York, NY—In a critical election year where progressive economic ideas are on the ballot, the Roosevelt Institute is pleased to announce that Michael Madowitz has joined the organization to lead its economic research in the new role of principal economist. As principal economist, Madowitz will work with Roosevelt’s issue-area experts to develop research and strategy with the goal of driving a long-term paradigm change in our economy.
How SCOTUS’s Chevron Strike-Down Will Hurt Americans—and Democracy - Roosevelt Institute
There’s a lot of talk about threats to and the future of American democracy these days, and for good reason. Our expectations for how core government institutions should function are challenged daily. Sometimes this looks scandalous—like when a Supreme Court justice’s wife turns out to have supported a coup—and sometimes it just looks like the grinding, routine dysfunction of Congress. Somewhere in between are the rulings that came down from the Supreme Court at the start of this summer.
Caring about Care: Why an Industrial Strategy for Care Makes Sense in Any Economy
At Roosevelt, we talk a lot about the need for an “industrial strategy for care work”—in fact, we talked about it just a few weeks ago here. We like the industrial strategy framework because it puts care where it should be: in the category of an essential good or service for which the government should have a vested interest in ensuring stable access. “Stable” is key. Stable care sources are essential to the experience of the cared-for and their families.
Building the Government We Need: A Framework for Democratic State Capacity
Introduction In 2021, with the COVID-19 pandemic raging and the economy in free fall, Congress passed the American Rescue Plan, issuing billions of dollars of emergency economic relief. The bill included, among many other programs, directives for the Treasury Department to provide direct household economic support through a massive new Child Tax Credit.
A Tale of Two Market Failures: Why Childcare and Green Technology Require Different Public Approaches
After a decade in which the neoliberal consensus began to crumble, we’ve seen more policy experimentation in the last four years than we have in half a century. New and previously abandoned policy initiatives—from the use of the Defense Production Act to turbocharge the production of the COVID-19 vaccine to the creation of a national green bank through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund—have used public power to address market failures in novel ways.
Investing in Care: Exploring An Industrial Strategy for Care Work
Introduction As the Biden administration’s first term draws to a close, the care agenda remains one gaping piece of unfinished business. The administration’s original Build Back Better proposal included investments to provide universal preschool for three- and four-year-olds, reduce costs and expand access to childcare for younger children, and expand access to home care services for seniors and people with disabilities.
Why Black Teachers Matter
A recent published in the American Educational Research Journal found that Black students are less likely to be unnecessarily placed in special education classes when they are taught by Black teachers. The study, “Teacher-Student Race Match and Identification for Discretionary Education Services,” found that the results were strongest for Black boys, particularly those who are economically disadvantaged.
Biden’s Student Debt Cancellation: As “Plan B” Emerges, What’s at Stake?
A year ago, in Biden v. Nebraska, the US Supreme Court struck down President Joe Biden’s executive order to cancel up to $20,000 in debt per borrower. Since then, the Biden administration has taken incremental steps to reduce debt. As of January 2024, 3.7 million Americans had received a total of $136.6 billion in debt forgiveness. By April, those numbers had increased to $153 billion for 4.3 million Americans. But most Americans with student debt have still not received any forgiveness to date.
Where Is Economic Justice Policy Now—And Where Does It Need to Go? - Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
For months, commentators have been interrogating why the public’s perception of the economy is so negative when, by standard measures, it is booming. This is an important question that may well decide the presidential election. But looking beyond the election to the progressive policy agenda going forward requires asking something else: What is the relationship between a booming economy and economic justice?
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