Would President Biden’s infrastructure plan — the American Jobs Plan — create around 3 million new jobs? Or 16 million? 19 million? All three numbers have been discussed. I’m quoted in CNN with a different estimate: zero.
Strain said it’s good that Biden’s plan aims to make long-term infrastructure improvements over a period of years rather than trying to give the economy a quick jolt through immediate spending on so-called “shovel-ready” projects. But Strain said that, because the economy is already likely to be at full employment over this extended time horizon, the number of additional jobs the Biden plan will create “is zero.” The plan, Strain argued, is likely to merely shift jobs toward industries “favored by the infrastructure plan,” such as clean energy, while shifting them away from other industries.